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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 120 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: ball · band · court · bulb · bore · cue · content · tube

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. bore — to tire
  5. content — happy
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. band — a ring
  8. ball — a great time
  9. tube — the underground
  10. band — a music group
  11. cue — for pool
  12. bore — to drill
  13. ball — a dance
  14. cue — a hint
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. tube — a container
  17. court — of law
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. court — for sport
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. bulb — for light
  22. court — of a king
  23. cue — a signal
  24. content — the amount

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