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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · cap · face · pitcher · press · capital · bass · pit

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bass — low music
  3. pit — in a race
  4. cap — of ice
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. face — to confront
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. press — a publisher
  9. bass — the fish
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. face — to point toward
  12. press — to push
  13. face — part of the head
  14. capital — a city
  15. cap — a hat
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. capital — money
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. press — newspapers
  24. cap — a lid

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