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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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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: chest · patient · prune · bay · race · pitcher · capital · stick

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. prune — to trim
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. chest — of your body
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. chest — of your body
  8. capital — money
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. race — the arms race
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. race — humankind
  16. chest — a box
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. prune — to trim
  21. race — a contest
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. capital — a city

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