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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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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. field — for sport
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. chair — a leader
  7. band — a ring
  8. field — farmland
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. field — a subject
  11. firm — a company
  12. band — a music group
  13. firm — decided
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. race — the arms race
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. race — a contest
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. firm — steady
  23. race — humankind
  24. chair — to sit on

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