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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 116 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: tear · present · sharp · mate · bound · capital · game · patient

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. mate — a friend
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bound — tied together
  7. present — a gift
  8. mate — a partner
  9. bound — obliged
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. tear — from crying
  12. sharp — clever
  13. game — wild animals
  14. present — there
  15. game — a match
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. capital — a city
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. tear — to rip
  20. capital — money
  21. mate — to breed
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. present — the time now

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