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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: fork · press · stand · capital · row · fall

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. fall — to drop
  3. capital — money
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. stand — to bear
  6. row — a line
  7. capital — a city
  8. press — to push
  9. fall — the season
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. row — to paddle
  13. press — newspapers
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. press — a publisher
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fork — to eat with

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