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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: bore · board · mine · swing · tube · band · chair · shower

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. swing — to play on
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. band — a ring
  5. tube — a container
  6. bore — to drill
  7. tube — the underground
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. swing — music
  11. swing — in golf
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. board — to get on
  15. mine — for digging
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. board — a committee
  20. chair — a leader
  21. bore — to tire
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — rain

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