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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: court · safe · pit · mug · capital · patient · march · land

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. pit — a hole
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. land — ground
  5. court — for sport
  6. capital — money
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. mug — to rob
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. land — a country
  12. pit — in a race
  13. mug — a cup
  14. mug — a face
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. march — music
  17. capital — a city
  18. court — of a king
  19. march — the month
  20. land — to come down
  21. march — the month
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. safe — out of danger

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