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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: capital · leaves · wind · pitch · patient · degree · land · pop

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. degree — temperature
  3. pop — to visit
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. pitch — completely
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pop — music
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. degree — from a university
  11. capital — money
  12. pop — soda
  13. land — ground
  14. capital — a city
  15. wind — moving air
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. land — to come down
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. degree — an amount

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