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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: roll · rash · fork · chair · squash · content · press · capital

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. press — a publisher
  3. rash — a series
  4. squash — the sport
  5. roll — a cake
  6. roll — a list
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. content — the amount
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. press — newspapers
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. chair — a leader
  14. squash — to crush
  15. rash — hasty
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. capital — money
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. press — to push
  22. fork — in a road
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. content — happy

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