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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: court · pitcher · safe · patient · capital · pit · snap · net

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. capital — money
  4. court — for sport
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to click
  8. pit — in a race
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. capital — a city
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. net — for catching
  17. pit — a hole
  18. net — in sport
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. court — of law
  22. court — of a king
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. net — after costs

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