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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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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: capital · cap · patient · foot · rule · content · cue · fork

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. foot — a measure
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. capital — money
  7. cue — a signal
  8. content — happy
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cap — a hat
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. cue — a hint
  14. fork — in a road
  15. cap — a lid
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rule — a law
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. cue — for pool
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. capital — a city
  23. rule — government
  24. fork — to eat with

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