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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: craft · pop · hand · content · bound · bear · dip · spring

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. craft — boats
  3. pop — music
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. spring — the season
  6. content — happy
  7. pop — to visit
  8. bound — certain
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. hand — in cards
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. craft — a skill
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. hand — help
  15. bound — tied together
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. pop — soda
  19. spring — of water
  20. bear — the animal
  21. content — the amount
  22. dip — to sink
  23. spring — a coil
  24. craft — a handicraft

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