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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 116 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: season · patient · capital · land · stock · fall · ball · mate

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. capital — money
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. land — a country
  5. mate — to breed
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. fall — the season
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. land — ground
  11. fall — to drop
  12. ball — a great time
  13. capital — a city
  14. stock — shares
  15. ball — a dance
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. season — in sport
  18. mate — a partner
  19. mate — a friend
  20. fall — to drop
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. land — to come down
  24. stock — goods

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