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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: capital · stock · patient · degree · file · row · bowl · bay

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. degree — an amount
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. capital — money
  9. row — a line
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. stock — shares
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. degree — temperature
  14. row — to paddle
  15. degree — from a university
  16. file — a document
  17. file — a line of people
  18. capital — a city
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. file — a tool
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. stock — goods
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. row — a quarrel

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