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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: key · pass · bat · pop · bass · stem · mine · temple

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. pop — to visit
  6. pop — soda
  7. bass — the fish
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — to come from
  13. pop — music
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. key — the most important part
  16. key — in music
  17. pass — a permit
  18. bass — low music
  19. key — for a lock
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bat — the animal
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. stem — of a plant

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