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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bear · stem · capital · scale · chest · patient

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. chest — of your body
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. scale — size or range
  8. capital — money
  9. scale — in music
  10. chest — of your body
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. capital — a city
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. chest — a box
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. stem — to come from

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