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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: lie · march · game · jam · cabinet · fan · chest · land

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. march — the month
  3. land — ground
  4. land — to come down
  5. chest — of your body
  6. land — a country
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. chest — a box
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. game — a match
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. game — wild animals
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. march — the month
  22. lie — to recline
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. chest — of your body

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