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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 116 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: pop · bore · court · bowl · tube · wake

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. wake — a trail
  3. court — of a king
  4. tube — the underground
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. pop — music
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. tube — a container
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. court — for sport
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. bore — to drill
  15. pop — soda
  16. pop — to visit
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. court — of law

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