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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: tear · net · march · patient · vault · capital

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. net — after costs
  3. march — the month
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. march — music
  8. net — in sport
  9. tear — to rip
  10. march — the month
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. tear — from crying
  14. net — for catching
  15. tear — from crying
  16. capital — money
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. vault — a safe

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