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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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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: bass · pitch · rule · stick · cue · temple · coach · chest

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked 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. rule — government
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — a law
  8. bass — low music
  9. cue — a hint
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. pitch — completely
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — a box
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. cue — for pool
  20. bass — the fish
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. cue — a signal
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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