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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: kid · coach · rush · mine · capital · mate · stem · leaves

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. capital — money
  3. rush — hurry
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. capital — a city
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. mate — to breed
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mine — for digging
  17. kid — child
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. kid — to tease
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. coach — a trainer

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