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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. wound — an injury
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — a city
  5. board — to get on
  6. wound — an injury
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. court — for sport
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. stand — to bear
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. chair — a leader
  14. bass — the fish
  15. court — of a king
  16. board — a committee
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. bass — low music
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. court — of law
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. capital — money
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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