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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 120 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: net · rule · wake · bulb · plane · last · tube · court

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. bulb — for light
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. rule — government
  7. last — finally
  8. court — for sport
  9. tube — the underground
  10. wake — a trail
  11. plane — a tool
  12. rule — a law
  13. net — for catching
  14. court — of a king
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. court — of law
  17. last — to go on
  18. tube — a container
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. last — final
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — in sport

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