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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: hand · court · board · mug · vault · pound · mine · band

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. mug — a cup
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. mug — a face
  5. hand — help
  6. pound — a weight
  7. mine — for digging
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. vault — a safe
  11. court — of a king
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. court — for sport
  14. board — to get on
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. court — of law
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. board — a committee
  20. mug — to rob
  21. hand — in cards
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a ring

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