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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: ball · lean · content · spring · game · degree · capital · patient

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. game — wild animals
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. capital — a city
  6. ball — a dance
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. spring — a coil
  9. content — happy
  10. degree — from a university
  11. lean — thin
  12. game — a match
  13. degree — temperature
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. lean — to bend
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. content — the amount
  20. spring — the season
  21. ball — a great time
  22. spring — of water
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. degree — an amount

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