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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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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: face · chair · scale · row · bass · land · kid · vault

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. face — part of the head
  4. land — to come down
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. chair — a leader
  8. kid — child
  9. scale — size or range
  10. land — a country
  11. face — to point toward
  12. land — ground
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. row — a line
  15. vault — a safe
  16. bass — low music
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bass — the fish
  19. face — to confront
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. row — to paddle
  22. kid — to tease
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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