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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: press · capital · lean · fork · race · row · pop · last

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. pop — to visit
  3. race — humankind
  4. last — to go on
  5. capital — a city
  6. pop — music
  7. row — to paddle
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. race — a contest
  10. pop — soda
  11. row — a line
  12. last — final
  13. lean — thin
  14. capital — money
  15. lean — to bend
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. press — a publisher
  18. press — newspapers
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. race — the arms race
  22. press — to push
  23. last — finally
  24. lean — to rest against

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