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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: cabinet · band · race · capital · pitch · press · wave · last

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. last — final
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. band — a music group
  6. press — a publisher
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. press — newspapers
  9. race — the arms race
  10. band — a ring
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. last — finally
  14. press — to push
  15. capital — a city
  16. race — a contest
  17. pitch — completely
  18. capital — money
  19. race — humankind
  20. last — to go on
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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