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

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cap — of ice
  6. land — to come down
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. rest — what's left
  9. capital — money
  10. rest — a break
  11. can — a tin
  12. rest — what's left
  13. spell — letters
  14. can — a tin
  15. land — ground
  16. land — a country
  17. spell — magic
  18. press — newspapers
  19. spell — a short time
  20. can — to be able to
  21. cap — a lid
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. press — to push
  24. stem — to come from

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