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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: bear · court · spring · ground · track · board · prune · tube

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. board — to get on
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. spring — the season
  5. track — a song
  6. spring — a coil
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. bear — the animal
  9. tube — the underground
  10. track — a path
  11. prune — to trim
  12. tube — a container
  13. ground — a position
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. ground — the earth
  16. court — of a king
  17. spring — of water
  18. court — of law
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. bear — the animal
  21. court — for sport
  22. track — to keep track
  23. prune — to trim
  24. board — a committee

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