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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bore — to drill
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. charge — electricity
  5. charge — in control
  6. band — a ring
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. capital — a city
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. band — a music group
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. charge — a price
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. press — to push
  17. pitch — completely
  18. capital — money
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. press — a publisher
  23. press — newspapers
  24. bore — to 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