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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 116 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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. key — in music
  4. kid — child
  5. club — a group
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. capital — a city
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. kid — to tease
  10. stock — shares
  11. key — the most important part
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. stock — goods
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. club — for golf
  21. stem — to come from
  22. club — for dancing
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. key — for a lock

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