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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: ground · court · board · shower · bore · bulb · plane · squash

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. ground — a position
  3. board — to get on
  4. ground — the earth
  5. court — for sport
  6. bore — to drill
  7. shower — to wash
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bulb — for light
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. board — a committee
  12. bore — to tire
  13. squash — the sport
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. shower — rain
  16. squash — to crush
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. court — of a king
  20. ground — crushed
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. plane — a tool
  23. court — of law
  24. bore — gave birth

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