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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: ball · net · board · pass · chair · face · stem · content

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. ball — a great time
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. face — to confront
  6. board — a committee
  7. pass — a permit
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. stem — to come from
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. content — the amount
  15. face — part of the head
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. net — after costs
  19. board — to get on
  20. ball — a dance
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. face — to point toward
  23. net — for catching
  24. net — in sport

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