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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: lean · pop · tube · land · board · vault · bore · ball

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. pop — music
  3. tube — a container
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. board — to get on
  6. land — ground
  7. board — a committee
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. land — a country
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. pop — to visit
  13. vault — a safe
  14. lean — to bend
  15. lean — thin
  16. land — to come down
  17. pop — soda
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. ball — a great time
  20. bore — to drill
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. tube — the underground
  23. bore — to tire
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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