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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: club · press · patient · season · spell · bass · capital · mate

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. spell — a short time
  4. press — to push
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. club — for dancing
  7. season — in sport
  8. mate — to breed
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. press — a publisher
  11. club — a group
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. capital — a city
  14. capital — money
  15. club — for golf
  16. press — newspapers
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. spell — magic
  19. bass — the fish
  20. mate — a friend
  21. bass — low music
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. spell — letters
  24. season — of the year

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