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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: patient · press · board · mine · capital · staff · key · charge

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. capital — a city
  3. board — to get on
  4. charge — a price
  5. staff — employees
  6. charge — in control
  7. press — to push
  8. key — in music
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. press — a publisher
  12. staff — employees
  13. capital — money
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. mine — for digging
  17. board — a committee
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. staff — a stick
  20. key — the most important part
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. charge — electricity
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. press — newspapers

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