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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: wound · mark · press · pass · arm · stock · capital · pitch

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  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. pass — to succeed
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. press — a publisher
  4. wound — an injury
  5. press — to push
  6. mark — a trace
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. stock — shares
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. wound — an injury
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. pitch — completely
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — money
  16. mark — a grade
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. pass — a permit
  20. press — newspapers
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. stock — goods
  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