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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: content · face · capital · charge · chair · vault · file · pitcher

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. file — a line of people
  3. chair — a leader
  4. capital — money
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. face — to point toward
  9. file — a document
  10. charge — a price
  11. capital — a city
  12. charge — in control
  13. face — part of the head
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. content — happy
  17. vault — a safe
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. content — the amount
  21. file — a tool
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. charge — electricity

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