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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bay · cold · press · field · roll · mark · capital · can

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. 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. mark — to pay attention
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. mark — a grade
  4. cold — an illness
  5. capital — a city
  6. field — a subject
  7. press — to push
  8. capital — money
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. field — for sport
  11. mark — a trace
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. press — newspapers
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. can — a tin
  16. roll — a list
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. press — a publisher
  19. can — to be able to
  20. can — a tin
  21. roll — a cake
  22. cold — not warm
  23. field — farmland
  24. 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