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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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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: suit · drill · patient · capital · bank · cold

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. suit — to fit
  4. bank — for money
  5. cold — an illness
  6. suit — in cards
  7. drill — a practice
  8. drill — the tool
  9. suit — clothes
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. bank — for money
  12. bank — of a river
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. capital — money
  15. drill — army training
  16. capital — a city
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. patient — a sick person

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