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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. tube — the underground
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. prune — to trim
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — for digging
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. tube — a container
  13. stand — to bear
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — a weight
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. prune — to trim
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. bear — the animal
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. prune — the fruit

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