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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: staff · band · wind · bass · pound · bound · rule · spring

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. rule — government
  6. rule — a law
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. staff — employees
  9. band — a ring
  10. bound — tied together
  11. band — a music group
  12. wind — moving air
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. pound — a weight
  15. bass — the fish
  16. spring — of water
  17. staff — employees
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. staff — a stick
  20. bound — certain
  21. bass — low music
  22. wind — moving air
  23. spring — the season
  24. bound — obliged

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