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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
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: arm · patient · ground · bear · prune · board · capital · spell

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. ground — a position
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. spell — letters
  7. prune — to trim
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. spell — a short time
  10. board — to get on
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — the earth
  13. capital — a city
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. board — a committee
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bear — the animal
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. spell — magic
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. board — a flat piece

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