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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: hide · content · drill · kid · squash · capital · press · board

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. drill — army training
  3. kid — child
  4. press — a publisher
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. board — to get on
  8. kid — to tease
  9. content — happy
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. drill — the tool
  12. press — newspapers
  13. squash — the sport
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. capital — money
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. board — a committee
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. capital — a city
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. squash — to crush
  23. content — the amount
  24. drill — a practice

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