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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: net · rash · fork · cell · bulb · key · wake · bank

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. net — in sport
  4. fork — in a road
  5. bulb — for light
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wake — a trail
  8. rash — a series
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. bank — for money
  13. bank — of a river
  14. key — the most important part
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. rash — hasty
  17. key — for a lock
  18. bank — for money
  19. key — in music
  20. net — for catching
  21. cell — a phone
  22. net — after costs
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. bulb — for light

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