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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 116 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: lie · capital · scale · press · craft · pitcher · rash · field

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. rash — hasty
  3. lie — to recline
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. scale — size or range
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. craft — boats
  8. field — a subject
  9. press — a publisher
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. craft — a skill
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. capital — money
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. rash — a series
  20. scale — in music
  21. capital — a city
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. press — newspapers
  24. capital — a big letter

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