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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 · bass · mine · stand · band · squash · clip · pound

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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. mine — belonging to me
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bass — low music
  11. band — a music group
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. squash — to crush
  14. bass — the fish
  15. clip — a video
  16. stand — to bear
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. squash — the sport
  19. clip — to cut
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. mine — for digging
  22. pound — a weight
  23. band — a ring
  24. clip — for paper

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