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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 120 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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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: press · mate · capital · pit · straw · drill · rest · tear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. drill — army training
  3. press — newspapers
  4. mate — a partner
  5. rest — what's left
  6. tear — from crying
  7. capital — money
  8. pit — a hole
  9. rest — a break
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. drill — a practice
  12. press — to push
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. drill — the tool
  16. press — a publisher
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mate — a friend
  20. tear — to rip
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. rest — what's left
  23. pit — in a race
  24. capital — a city

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