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

Word bank: wave · press · capital · vault · row · bear

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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. row — a line
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. press — newspapers
  6. capital — a city
  7. vault — a safe
  8. capital — money
  9. bear — the animal
  10. press — to push
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. row — to paddle
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. wave — of the sea

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