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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: last · capital · track · hand · bank · patient · mouse · press

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. track — a path
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. hand — in cards
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. capital — a city
  9. hand — help
  10. press — newspapers
  11. track — to keep track
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. bank — for money
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. press — a publisher
  18. last — finally
  19. last — to go on
  20. capital — money
  21. last — final
  22. press — to push
  23. track — a song
  24. bank — of a river

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