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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: capital · object · craft · wax · land · snap · press · pitch

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. object — an aim
  3. land — a country
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. land — to come down
  6. press — to push
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. land — ground
  10. pitch — completely
  11. snap — to click
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. press — a publisher
  14. wax — to grow
  15. craft — boats
  16. object — to protest
  17. capital — money
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. object — a thing
  20. press — newspapers
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. craft — a skill
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. capital — a city

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