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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: patient · drill · clip · bay · bear · roll · wound · capital

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. clip — for paper
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — money
  5. clip — a video
  6. bear — the animal
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. roll — a cake
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bear — the animal
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. clip — to cut
  15. capital — a city
  16. drill — a practice
  17. drill — army training
  18. roll — a list
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. drill — the tool
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. patient — a sick person

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