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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: object · band · pop · bore · swing · game · rock · perch

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. bore — to tire
  3. game — a match
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. object — an aim
  6. bore — to drill
  7. pop — soda
  8. band — a music group
  9. pop — to visit
  10. object — to protest
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. swing — to play on
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. band — a ring
  15. perch — the fish
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — music
  18. object — a thing
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. pop — music
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. rock — a stone
  24. game — wild animals

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