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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: court · bore · object · cap · board · cold · pitch · wave

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. bore — to tire
  3. object — an aim
  4. court — of a king
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. cap — a lid
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. cold — an illness
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. board — to get on
  13. court — for sport
  14. cap — a hat
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. court — of law
  18. pitch — completely
  19. cap — of ice
  20. object — to protest
  21. cold — not warm
  22. board — a committee
  23. object — a thing
  24. bore — to drill

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