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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. cap — a hat
  4. press — a publisher
  5. last — finally
  6. board — to get on
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. press — newspapers
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. wind — moving air
  13. press — to push
  14. cap — a lid
  15. last — to go on
  16. board — a committee
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. capital — a city
  20. last — final
  21. cap — of ice
  22. wind — moving air
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. pitch — completely

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