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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: chest · track · content · mark · sharp · capital · deal · patient

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. mark — a grade
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. track — a song
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. track — to keep track
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. content — happy
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. chest — a box
  14. sharp — clever
  15. track — a path
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. deal — to handle
  19. capital — money
  20. capital — a city
  21. mark — a trace
  22. content — the amount
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — of your body

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