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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: date · tear · cabinet · bore · degree · capital · press · chip

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. tear — to rip
  3. degree — from a university
  4. press — to push
  5. tear — from crying
  6. press — newspapers
  7. chip — for betting
  8. bore — to drill
  9. chip — to eat
  10. press — a publisher
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. bore — to tire
  14. degree — temperature
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. degree — an amount
  18. capital — a city
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. capital — money
  24. date — the fruit

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