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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: pop · kid · straw · patient · capital · game · jam · pit

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. game — wild animals
  4. pop — music
  5. kid — to tease
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. pop — to visit
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. capital — money
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pop — soda
  17. capital — a city
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. game — a match
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. pit — in a race
  23. kid — child
  24. straw — a straw man

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