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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: wound · club · capital · race · patient · last · fork · mate

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. race — the arms race
  6. race — humankind
  7. fork — in a road
  8. capital — money
  9. last — to go on
  10. race — a contest
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. mate — a partner
  13. club — for dancing
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. club — a group
  16. mate — a friend
  17. mate — to breed
  18. last — finally
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. wound — an injury
  21. club — for golf
  22. last — final
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. wound — an injury

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