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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pop · safe · temple · field · mine · land · swing · bass

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. pop — to visit
  3. field — a subject
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. field — farmland
  9. swing — in golf
  10. bass — low music
  11. pop — soda
  12. swing — to play on
  13. pop — music
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. mine — for digging
  17. land — ground
  18. bass — the fish
  19. swing — music
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. field — for sport
  22. land — a country
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. land — to come down

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