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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: sharp · mark · cold · date · pound · temple · wound · bass

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. mark — a grade
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. cold — not warm
  8. mark — a trace
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. date — the fruit
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bass — the fish
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. wound — an injury
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. sharp — clever
  20. pound — a weight
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bass — low music
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — exactly

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