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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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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 · fork · cap · net · land · club · court · bowl

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. net — for catching
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. land — a country
  7. net — in sport
  8. land — to come down
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. cap — a hat
  11. net — after costs
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. club — for dancing
  14. court — for sport
  15. cap — a lid
  16. court — of a king
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — to drill
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fork — in a road
  21. court — of law
  22. land — ground
  23. club — for golf
  24. club — a group

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