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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: pit · stick · pass · capital · degree · patient

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. capital — a city
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. degree — from a university
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pass — a permit
  9. degree — temperature
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. capital — money
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. degree — an amount
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. pit — a hole
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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