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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: stand · chair · court · face · net · pitch · bark · vault

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. face — to confront
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. court — for sport
  7. face — to point toward
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. bark — to shout
  10. net — in sport
  11. stand — to bear
  12. face — part of the head
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. net — for catching
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. vault — a safe
  18. court — of a king
  19. net — after costs
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. chair — a leader
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. pitch — completely
  24. stand — for spectators

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