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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: content · lie · capital · mine · patient · fan · can · roll

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. lie — to recline
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. capital — a city
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. can — to be able to
  16. content — the amount
  17. roll — a list
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. can — a tin
  20. content — happy
  21. can — a tin
  22. capital — money
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. mine — for digging

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