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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: capital · plane · kid · net · patient · bound · arm · wind

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. wind — moving air
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. bound — tied together
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. wind — moving air
  11. net — for catching
  12. kid — to tease
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. capital — a city
  16. capital — money
  17. net — in sport
  18. net — after costs
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. bound — obliged
  21. plane — a tool
  22. kid — child
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. bound — certain

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