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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: plane · game · tube · bark · bound · wake · hand · rule

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. game — a match
  8. bound — tied together
  9. bound — certain
  10. tube — the underground
  11. bound — obliged
  12. wake — a trail
  13. hand — in cards
  14. plane — a tool
  15. rule — a law
  16. game — wild animals
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. hand — help
  21. rule — government
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. tube — a container
  24. bark — to shout

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