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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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Word bank
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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: rule · game · plane · spell · tube · prune · hide · cabinet

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. prune — to trim
  3. tube — the underground
  4. game — wild animals
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. prune — to trim
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. game — a match
  12. plane — a tool
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. spell — magic
  15. spell — a short time
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. rule — a law
  19. spell — letters
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. tube — a container
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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