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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: band · leaves · game · patient · bound · capital · spell · spring

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. spell — a short time
  4. spell — letters
  5. spring — the season
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. game — a match
  11. bound — obliged
  12. spring — of water
  13. bound — tied together
  14. spell — magic
  15. spring — a coil
  16. band — a music group
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a city
  22. bound — certain
  23. band — a ring
  24. leaves — to go away

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