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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: land · plane · band · swing · court · last · chair · bore

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  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. plane — a tool
  2. bore — to drill
  3. chair — a leader
  4. swing — music
  5. bore — to tire
  6. land — ground
  7. band — a ring
  8. court — of a king
  9. last — to go on
  10. land — a country
  11. last — finally
  12. land — to come down
  13. last — final
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. swing — in golf
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. swing — to play on
  20. court — for sport
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. band — a music group
  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