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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 120 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 · current · game · capital · cabinet · patient · branch · tube

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. tube — a container
  5. current — electric
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. branch — a division
  12. current — of water
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. tube — the underground
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — money
  21. game — wild animals
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. current — happening now

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