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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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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: cabinet · band · race · capital · pitch · press

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. capital — money
  4. press — a publisher
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. race — humankind
  7. press — to push
  8. band — a music group
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. capital — a city
  12. race — the arms race
  13. band — a ring
  14. press — newspapers
  15. pitch — completely
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. capital — a big letter

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