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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.

Make a worksheet

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: pitcher · firm · lash · net · patient · chest · capital · bat

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. chest — of your body
  4. net — after costs
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. firm — steady
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. chest — a box
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a city
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. firm — decided
  15. net — for catching
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bat — the animal
  19. chest — of your body
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. net — in sport
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. firm — a company

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