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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: patient · rash · capital · stem · straw · face · cap · stand

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. rash — hasty
  3. cap — a lid
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. face — part of the head
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. face — to confront
  9. rash — a series
  10. cap — of ice
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stand — to bear
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. face — to point toward
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. capital — a city
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. cap — a hat
  23. capital — money
  24. stem — of a plant

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