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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 120 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: pitcher · arm · tear · bark · staff · content · coach · bound

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bound — obliged
  5. content — happy
  6. staff — employees
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. staff — employees
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. bark — to shout
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. tear — from crying
  19. content — the amount
  20. tear — from crying
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. staff — a stick

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