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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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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: rest · cap · firm · bat · race · court · patient · capital

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. capital — money
  3. cap — a hat
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. court — of law
  6. cap — of ice
  7. race — the arms race
  8. firm — a company
  9. court — of a king
  10. cap — a lid
  11. rest — a break
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. firm — steady
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. court — for sport
  18. capital — a city
  19. firm — decided
  20. race — humankind
  21. bat — the animal
  22. race — a contest
  23. rest — what's left
  24. capital — a big letter

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