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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — money
  3. cold — an illness
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. cold — not warm
  6. charge — a price
  7. charge — electricity
  8. suit — in cards
  9. charge — in control
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. suit — clothes
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. suit — to fit
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. cell — a phone

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