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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.

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: charge · march · bear · row · press · game · chest · plane

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — wild animals
  3. chest — of your body
  4. march — the month
  5. game — a match
  6. march — the month
  7. march — music
  8. plane — a tool
  9. charge — electricity
  10. press — to push
  11. row — to paddle
  12. press — a publisher
  13. charge — in control
  14. charge — a price
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. bear — the animal
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. row — a line
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chest — a box
  22. press — newspapers
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. bear — the animal

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