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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: capital · calf · straw · present · patient · shower

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. present — the time now
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. shower — rain
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. shower — to wash
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. present — there
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. present — a gift

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