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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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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. press — a publisher
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. capital — money
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. clip — to cut
  7. press — to push
  8. bat — the animal
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. suit — in cards
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. chair — a leader
  16. capital — a city
  17. press — newspapers
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. suit — clothes
  20. clip — for paper
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. suit — to fit
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. clip — a video

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