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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 120 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: capital · plane · cap · foot · kid · stock · patient · rule

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. plane — a tool
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. stock — goods
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. stock — shares
  7. capital — a city
  8. cap — a hat
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. foot — a measure
  11. cap — a lid
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. kid — to tease
  19. kid — child
  20. capital — money
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. rule — government
  24. cap — of ice

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