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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 · chest · court · foot · bear · file · bound · prune

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a document
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. bound — certain
  6. foot — a measure
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. court — of law
  9. chest — of your body
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. bound — obliged
  13. pop — soda
  14. court — of a king
  15. bear — the animal
  16. pop — to visit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. chest — of your body
  19. file — a line of people
  20. chest — a box
  21. court — for sport
  22. bound — tied together
  23. prune — to trim
  24. pop — music

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