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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: hand · press · can · fork · game · sharp · lie · capital

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. game — wild animals
  3. capital — money
  4. fork — in a road
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — help
  8. can — a tin
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. press — newspapers
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. game — a match
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. press — a publisher
  18. can — a tin
  19. press — to push
  20. lie — to recline
  21. can — to be able to
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. capital — a city
  24. sharp — exactly

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