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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: branch · capital · patient · bat · stem · spell · charge · tube

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. spell — a short time
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. spell — magic
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stem — to come from
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. spell — letters
  11. tube — the underground
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. charge — in control
  14. charge — electricity
  15. tube — a container
  16. capital — money
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — a division
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. charge — a price
  22. bat — the animal
  23. capital — a city
  24. patient — a sick person

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