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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: pop · bark · ruler · bound · spring · tube · wound · court

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. court — of law
  3. wound — an injury
  4. tube — a container
  5. bound — obliged
  6. court — of a king
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. bound — tied together
  11. court — for sport
  12. bound — certain
  13. tube — the underground
  14. pop — music
  15. bark — to shout
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pop — to visit
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. spring — of water
  23. pop — soda
  24. spring — a coil

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