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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: nail · field · bark · bound · content · deal · jam · cell

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. bound — obliged
  4. field — farmland
  5. bark — to shout
  6. deal — to handle
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. content — happy
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. cell — in biology
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. content — the amount
  15. bound — certain
  16. field — for sport
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. field — a subject
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. cell — a phone
  21. bound — tied together
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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