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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 120 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 · mouse · stock · patient · season · swing · kid · content

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. swing — music
  3. capital — money
  4. content — the amount
  5. season — in sport
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. stock — shares
  8. capital — a city
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. kid — to tease
  14. content — happy
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. kid — child
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. swing — in golf
  20. season — of the year
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. stock — goods
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. content — videos and posts

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