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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. ground — crushed
  3. pop — music
  4. mate — a partner
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bass — the fish
  7. pit — in a race
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. mine — for digging
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. pop — soda
  13. mate — to breed
  14. ground — a position
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. pit — a hole
  18. ground — the earth
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bass — low music
  23. mate — a friend
  24. pop — to visit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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