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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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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: cell · shower · chair · vault · face · chest

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chest — of your body
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. chair — a leader
  5. face — part of the head
  6. face — to point toward
  7. cell — in biology
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. chest — a box
  10. cell — a phone
  11. shower — rain
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chest — of your body
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. face — to confront
  17. vault — a safe
  18. shower — to wash

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