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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 116 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 · straw · firm · dip · pitch · spring · press · land

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  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. capital — money
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. press — to push
  6. pitch — completely
  7. press — newspapers
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — a coil
  11. land — ground
  12. capital — a city
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. dip — to sink
  16. firm — decided
  17. firm — a company
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. spring — of water
  20. firm — steady
  21. land — to come down
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. land — a country
  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