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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 124 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: capital · court · wind · press · band · foot

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of a king
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. press — a publisher
  7. band — a ring
  8. wind — moving air
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. press — to push
  11. wind — moving air
  12. capital — money
  13. court — of law
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. capital — a city
  16. foot — a measure
  17. band — a music group
  18. foot — part of the body

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