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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 · field · bark · object · present · mine · court · pound

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. pound — a weight
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. court — of a king
  6. field — a subject
  7. present — the time now
  8. field — farmland
  9. present — there
  10. field — for sport
  11. court — for sport
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. spring — of water
  14. object — a thing
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. object — to protest
  17. bark — to shout
  18. object — an aim
  19. spring — the season
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. spring — a coil
  23. present — a gift
  24. mine — for digging

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