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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 · foot · bear · sharp · clip · lie · drill

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. clip — for paper
  4. drill — army training
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. clip — a video
  9. capital — money
  10. capital — a city
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. drill — a practice
  13. foot — a measure
  14. press — newspapers
  15. press — to push
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. sharp — clever
  20. bear — the animal
  21. drill — the tool
  22. lie — to recline
  23. clip — to cut
  24. lie — an untruth

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