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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: mine · patient · ruler · pound · court · tube · capital · coach

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. capital — money
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. tube — a container
  6. court — for sport
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. mine — for digging
  10. tube — the underground
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. court — of a king
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. capital — a city
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. pound — a weight
  23. court — of law
  24. capital — a big letter

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