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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.

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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: shower · capital · clip · cabinet · field · object · press · file

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. capital — money
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. file — a tool
  6. clip — for paper
  7. shower — rain
  8. field — farmland
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. object — an aim
  11. press — to push
  12. file — a document
  13. clip — a video
  14. press — newspapers
  15. field — for sport
  16. object — to protest
  17. shower — to wash
  18. object — a thing
  19. file — a line of people
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. field — a subject
  23. clip — to cut
  24. press — a publisher

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