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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: vault · rule · mate · hand · net · race · jam · plane

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — a friend
  4. vault — a safe
  5. race — humankind
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. net — after costs
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. hand — help
  13. net — in sport
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — the arms race
  18. plane — a tool
  19. mate — to breed
  20. rule — a law
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. net — for catching
  24. hand — in cards

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