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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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Word bank
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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: pit · cell · press · rash · capital · bear

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. press — to push
  3. pit — in a race
  4. capital — money
  5. bear — the animal
  6. press — a publisher
  7. bear — the animal
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. rash — a series
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. press — newspapers
  15. cell — in biology
  16. capital — a city
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — hasty

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