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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. bank — for money
  3. capital — a city
  4. content — happy
  5. track — a path
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. track — a song
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. mine — for digging
  11. bank — for money
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. mark — a grade
  15. track — to keep track
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. mark — a trace
  18. capital — money
  19. bank — of a river
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. content — the amount
  24. mine — belonging to me

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