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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: key · trunk · capital · mark · press · calf · roll · deal

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. mark — a grade
  3. capital — money
  4. roll — a cake
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. key — for a lock
  12. roll — a list
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. press — newspapers
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. key — in music
  18. deal — to handle
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. key — the most important part
  23. press — a publisher
  24. press — to push

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