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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: capital · patient · date · tube · mate · deal · mark · racket

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. mark — a trace
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. date — the fruit
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. mate — a friend
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. mate — to breed
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — money
  16. deal — to handle
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. tube — a container
  19. mark — a grade
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. tube — in a tire

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