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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · bear · tube · season · ball · wave · bore · straw

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. season — in sport
  3. bore — to tire
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. land — to come down
  10. bear — the animal
  11. tube — the underground
  12. season — of the year
  13. bear — the animal
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tube — a container
  16. bore — to drill
  17. ball — a dance
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. land — ground
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. land — a country
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. ball — a round shape

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