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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: scale · patient · spring · net · present · capital · leaves · kid

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. spring — of water
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. scale — size or range
  6. present — the time now
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. net — for catching
  9. capital — a city
  10. net — after costs
  11. scale — in music
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. kid — to tease
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. capital — money
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. spring — a coil
  19. net — in sport
  20. present — a gift
  21. spring — the season
  22. present — there
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. capital — a big letter

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