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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
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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: pound · band · stem · key · game · chair · capital · patient

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. capital — a city
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. pound — a weight
  6. stem — to come from
  7. game — a match
  8. band — a music group
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. key — the most important part
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. game — wild animals
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. capital — money
  19. key — for a lock
  20. band — a ring
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. key — in music
  23. chair — a leader
  24. stem — a stem cell

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