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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: last · roll · bowl · capital · kid · dip · press · game

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  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. roll — a cake
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. last — finally
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. kid — child
  7. game — wild animals
  8. press — newspapers
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. capital — a city
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. capital — money
  14. game — a match
  15. press — to push
  16. roll — a list
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. last — to go on
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. dip — to sink
  23. last — final
  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