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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 116 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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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: present · board · vault · pass · spring · court · bore · cabinet

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. present — a gift
  3. board — to get on
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. board — a committee
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. spring — the season
  10. bore — to drill
  11. court — of a king
  12. present — there
  13. spring — of water
  14. pass — a permit
  15. court — of law
  16. vault — a safe
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. spring — a coil
  19. bore — to tire
  20. present — the time now
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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