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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: date · craft · bank · tube · rule · vault

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bank — for money
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. rule — a law
  9. bank — of a river
  10. vault — a safe
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. craft — a skill
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. bank — for money
  15. rule — government
  16. tube — the underground
  17. tube — a container
  18. date — the fruit

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