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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.

Make a worksheet

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: game · scale · lash · cell · field · march · present · charge

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. march — the month
  3. game — a match
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. scale — in music
  6. field — farmland
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. field — for sport
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — a phone
  11. scale — size or range
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. charge — a price
  15. present — a gift
  16. march — music
  17. game — wild animals
  18. field — a subject
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. march — the month
  21. present — the time now
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. charge — electricity
  24. charge — in control

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