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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: saw · toast · row · press · present · capital

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. capital — a city
  3. saw — the tool
  4. present — a gift
  5. press — to push
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. present — there
  8. toast — bread
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. capital — money
  11. press — newspapers
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. present — the time now
  15. saw — the tool
  16. row — a line
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. press — a publisher

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