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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bulb · dip · club · fork · race · rule

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. race — humankind
  3. bulb — for light
  4. club — for dancing
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. club — for golf
  10. fork — in a road
  11. race — a contest
  12. bulb — for light
  13. rule — a law
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. race — the arms race
  16. dip — to sink
  17. club — a group
  18. dip — to dunk

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com