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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: spring · arm · bark · bound · board · court · squash · jam

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bound — obliged
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. squash — the sport
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bound — certain
  7. squash — to crush
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. spring — of water
  13. court — of law
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. court — for sport
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. board — a committee
  19. spring — a coil
  20. court — of a king
  21. spring — the season
  22. bound — tied together
  23. board — to get on
  24. board — a flat piece

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