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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mine · cap · tear · pitcher · pitch · capital · key · press

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. cap — a lid
  4. key — in music
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. key — for a lock
  7. capital — a city
  8. cap — of ice
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. key — the most important part
  12. press — newspapers
  13. cap — a hat
  14. pitch — completely
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. press — a publisher
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. press — to push
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. tear — to rip
  22. capital — money
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — from crying

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