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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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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: stick · patient · bowl · mine · date · swing · capital · vault

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. mine — for digging
  3. swing — to play on
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. capital — money
  9. vault — a safe
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. date — the fruit
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. swing — music
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. capital — a city
  21. swing — in golf
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. mine — an explosive

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