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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: bank · ball · pop · saw · degree · prune · pass · temple

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. pop — soda
  4. degree — an amount
  5. prune — to trim
  6. saw — the tool
  7. ball — a dance
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. saw — the tool
  10. degree — temperature
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. bank — for money
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. ball — a great time
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. degree — from a university
  20. bank — for money
  21. pop — music
  22. bank — of a river
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. pass — a permit

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