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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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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: wake · patient · nail · mark · stem · can · row · capital

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. can — a tin
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. wake — a trail
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. can — a tin
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. mark — a grade
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a line
  16. capital — a city
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. stem — to come from
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. capital — money
  21. can — to be able to
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. mark — a trace

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