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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: bowl · straw · board · court · bore · hand · branch · content

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. branch — a division
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. hand — in cards
  6. board — a committee
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. hand — help
  9. board — to get on
  10. bore — to tire
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. court — of law
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. content — the amount
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. bore — to drill
  20. court — for sport
  21. content — happy
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. court — of a king
  24. straw — dry grass

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