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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: capital · track · press · chest · rush · plane · bark · rock

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. rush — hurry
  5. chest — of your body
  6. press — a publisher
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. plane — a tool
  9. press — to push
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. capital — a city
  12. track — a path
  13. track — a song
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rock — a stone
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. press — newspapers
  21. track — to keep track
  22. chest — a box
  23. chest — of your body
  24. rock — music

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