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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: mine · net · fall · fork · patient · bulb · rule · bat

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. rule — government
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. net — after costs
  8. bulb — for light
  9. mine — for digging
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. fork — in a road
  12. fall — the season
  13. fall — to drop
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. net — in sport
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. fall — to drop
  21. rule — a law
  22. net — for catching
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. fork — a garden tool

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