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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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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: perch · pitch · bore · press · rock · field · key · capital

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. press — newspapers
  3. press — a publisher
  4. field — farmland
  5. press — to push
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bore — to tire
  9. perch — the fish
  10. pitch — completely
  11. rock — music
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. key — for a lock
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. rock — a stone
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. key — in music
  18. key — the most important part
  19. capital — money
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. capital — a city
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — a subject

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