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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: wind · net · firm · press · ground · season · capital · mouse

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  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 big letter
  2. capital — a city
  3. firm — a company
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. season — in sport
  6. ground — crushed
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. press — newspapers
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. firm — decided
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — after costs
  14. firm — steady
  15. net — in sport
  16. season — of the year
  17. ground — the earth
  18. wind — moving air
  19. capital — money
  20. ground — a position
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. press — to push
  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