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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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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. bass — low music
  4. squash — the sport
  5. bass — the fish
  6. ground — crushed
  7. cap — a lid
  8. mate — a partner
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. saw — the tool
  12. cap — of ice
  13. bear — the animal
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. squash — to crush
  16. ground — a position
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. saw — the tool
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. ground — the earth
  22. mate — to breed
  23. mate — a friend
  24. cap — a hat

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