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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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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: temple · ball · content · bass · pitch · cabinet · pop · pitcher

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bass — the fish
  3. pop — to visit
  4. content — the amount
  5. ball — a great time
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pop — soda
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. pitch — completely
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. ball — a dance
  18. pop — music
  19. bass — low music
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. cabinet — ministers

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