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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bound · bowl · temple · court · saw · wound · file · plane

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. wound — an injury
  3. court — of a king
  4. bound — certain
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. saw — the tool
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. file — a document
  15. court — of law
  16. court — for sport
  17. wound — an injury
  18. file — a line of people
  19. saw — the tool
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. plane — a tool
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. bound — tied together

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