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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 116 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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468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. kick — in football
  6. rash — a series
  7. capital — a city
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. press — a publisher
  10. press — to push
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. game — a match
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. rash — hasty
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. game — wild animals
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. prune — to trim
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. prune — to trim
  23. capital — money
  24. press — newspapers

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