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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: chair · vault · snap · charge · press · present

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. snap — to click
  3. charge — a price
  4. vault — a safe
  5. present — there
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. present — the time now
  10. press — a publisher
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. press — to push
  13. charge — in control
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. charge — electricity
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. chair — a leader
  18. press — newspapers

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