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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 120 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: rule · press · march · kid · trunk · game · rock · can

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. kid — to tease
  3. march — the month
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. press — to push
  6. game — wild animals
  7. can — to be able to
  8. game — a match
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — a tin
  11. rule — a law
  12. press — newspapers
  13. press — a publisher
  14. rock — music
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. march — music
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. march — the month
  19. kid — child
  20. rule — government
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. rock — a stone

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