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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: bank · bore · patient · swing · staff · capital · kid · prune

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. kid — child
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. swing — to play on
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. capital — a city
  9. bank — for money
  10. bore — to drill
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. kid — to tease
  13. swing — in golf
  14. staff — a stick
  15. prune — to trim
  16. swing — music
  17. staff — employees
  18. capital — money
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. staff — employees
  21. bore — to tire
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bank — for money

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