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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 124 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: can · chest · plane · lean · press · game · shower · chair

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. can — a tin
  3. lean — thin
  4. press — newspapers
  5. chest — a box
  6. lean — to bend
  7. can — a tin
  8. shower — to wash
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. can — to be able to
  12. chest — of your body
  13. shower — rain
  14. chest — of your body
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. press — a publisher
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. chair — a leader
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. press — to push
  22. plane — a tool
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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