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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: press · patient · racket · cap · bass · capital · club · wake

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. bass — the fish
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wake — a trail
  8. cap — a lid
  9. bass — low music
  10. club — for golf
  11. cap — of ice
  12. press — to push
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. capital — a city
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. club — for dancing
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. cap — a hat
  19. press — newspapers
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. press — a publisher
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. capital — money
  24. club — a group

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