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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: board · track · trunk · court · ball · saw · swing · nail

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. ball — a great time
  3. track — to keep track
  4. court — of a king
  5. board — to get on
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. board — a committee
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. swing — in golf
  10. swing — to play on
  11. court — for sport
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. track — a song
  14. track — a path
  15. saw — the tool
  16. swing — music
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. saw — the tool
  20. court — of law
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. trunk — of a tree

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