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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: pound · capital · pop · straw · lie · temple · hand · mine

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. pop — music
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. pop — soda
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. pop — to visit
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. capital — a city
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. pound — a weight
  16. hand — in cards
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. mine — for digging
  20. lie — to recline
  21. capital — money
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. straw — dry grass

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