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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 116 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: content · prune · degree · bound · spring · coach · last · firm

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. spring — of water
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bound — obliged
  6. content — the amount
  7. firm — steady
  8. prune — to trim
  9. degree — temperature
  10. bound — tied together
  11. last — final
  12. spring — a coil
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. last — to go on
  15. bound — certain
  16. prune — to trim
  17. spring — the season
  18. degree — from a university
  19. degree — an amount
  20. content — happy
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. last — finally
  23. firm — a company
  24. prune — the fruit

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