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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: chip · plane · kid · press · cabinet · last · game · ball

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. kid — to tease
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. game — wild animals
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. last — to go on
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. plane — a tool
  10. ball — a dance
  11. last — final
  12. press — a publisher
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. chip — to eat
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. kid — child
  17. ball — a great time
  18. press — to push
  19. press — newspapers
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. last — finally
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. chip — for betting

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