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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: foot · pass · calf · capital · press · pit

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. capital — a city
  6. pass — a permit
  7. pit — in a race
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. pit — a hole
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. press — a publisher
  12. foot — a measure
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. press — newspapers
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. capital — money
  18. press — to push

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