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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: board · wound · suit · capital · field · clip · patient · pit

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — farmland
  4. capital — a city
  5. pit — in a race
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. clip — to cut
  8. board — to get on
  9. clip — a video
  10. board — a committee
  11. clip — for paper
  12. pit — a hole
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. suit — in cards
  15. capital — money
  16. wound — an injury
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. field — for sport
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. suit — to fit
  22. wound — an injury
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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