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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: march · wind · spring · stand · chip · bound · degree · vault

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. stand — to bear
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. spring — the season
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — from a university
  7. vault — a safe
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. wind — moving air
  11. degree — temperature
  12. march — the month
  13. bound — tied together
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. chip — for betting
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. march — the month
  19. chip — to eat
  20. march — music
  21. bound — certain
  22. bound — obliged
  23. spring — of water
  24. wind — moving air

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