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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: hide · land · bore · tube · pitch · mug · board · court

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. mug — a cup
  5. tube — a container
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. land — a country
  8. board — to get on
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. court — for sport
  11. land — ground
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. board — a committee
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. mug — to rob
  16. bore — to tire
  17. mug — a face
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. court — of a king
  20. bore — to drill
  21. court — of law
  22. pitch — completely
  23. land — to come down
  24. tube — the underground

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