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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: tube · charge · rule · shower · board · bulb · degree · game

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. board — a committee
  3. charge — electricity
  4. tube — a container
  5. bulb — for light
  6. shower — to wash
  7. rule — a law
  8. shower — rain
  9. degree — an amount
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. board — to get on
  12. charge — a price
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. rule — government
  17. degree — from a university
  18. tube — the underground
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. charge — in control
  21. degree — temperature
  22. game — wild animals
  23. game — a match
  24. tube — in a tire

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