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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.

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: board · press · kick · bore · court · chest · prune · tube

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. bore — to tire
  3. tube — the underground
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. court — for sport
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kick — in football
  8. court — of a king
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. prune — to trim
  13. board — a committee
  14. chest — of your body
  15. press — to push
  16. press — a publisher
  17. chest — of your body
  18. tube — a container
  19. chest — a box
  20. press — newspapers
  21. bore — to drill
  22. prune — to trim
  23. court — of law
  24. board — to get on

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