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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 · pit · stem · deal · bass · spring · lie · capital

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. bass — low music
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. lie — to recline
  7. spring — a coil
  8. capital — money
  9. spring — the season
  10. bass — the fish
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — a city
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pit — a hole
  18. spring — of water
  19. stem — to come from
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. deal — to handle
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. lie — an untruth

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