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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: band · bowl · kick · rule · patient · game · land · capital

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. land — to come down
  5. capital — money
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. band — a music group
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. kick — in football
  11. land — a country
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. rule — a law
  16. capital — a city
  17. rule — government
  18. land — ground
  19. game — a match
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. game — wild animals
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. band — a ring

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