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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 · pop · land · date · capital · kid · content · temple

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. pop — music
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. content — happy
  7. kid — to tease
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. kid — child
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. land — to come down
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — money
  14. date — the fruit
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. land — ground
  17. bank — for money
  18. bank — for money
  19. bank — of a river
  20. land — a country
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. pop — soda
  23. pop — to visit
  24. temple — a place of worship

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