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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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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: bank · firm · bass · trunk · wound · capital · pop · ground

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. pop — music
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — for money
  5. wound — an injury
  6. ground — the earth
  7. bass — low music
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. firm — steady
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bank — of a river
  13. firm — a company
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. wound — an injury
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. bass — the fish
  19. pop — soda
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. ground — a position
  22. pop — to visit
  23. firm — decided
  24. capital — money

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