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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: mug · land · tube · capital · degree · rule · patient · trunk

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. mug — a face
  7. degree — an amount
  8. land — ground
  9. capital — a city
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. land — to come down
  13. tube — the underground
  14. mug — to rob
  15. degree — from a university
  16. mug — a cup
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. tube — a container
  20. land — a country
  21. rule — a law
  22. degree — temperature
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. rule — government

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