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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.

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: capital · mine · kid · press · band · land · stand · saw

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. press — newspapers
  3. land — ground
  4. mine — for digging
  5. land — to come down
  6. kid — child
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. capital — money
  10. band — a ring
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. land — a country
  13. capital — a city
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. press — a publisher
  17. saw — the tool
  18. kid — to tease
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. band — a music group
  21. stand — to bear
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. press — to push
  24. saw — the tool

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