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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: content · bulb · bore · ball · chair · last · lie · band

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. bulb — for light
  3. band — a music group
  4. content — the amount
  5. bulb — for light
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. content — happy
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bore — to tire
  12. lie — to recline
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bore — to drill
  15. ball — a dance
  16. chair — a leader
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. last — finally
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. last — final
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. last — to go on
  24. bulb — of a plant

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