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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · capital · bass · file · mine · stick · stock · branch

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  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. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — for digging
  3. capital — money
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stock — shares
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. capital — a city
  14. stock — goods
  15. file — a tool
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. bass — the fish
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. file — a line of people
  20. bass — low music
  21. branch — a division
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. file — a document
  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