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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: vault · present · chest · degree · mark · jam · court · board

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. court — of law
  3. present — a gift
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. mark — a trace
  6. court — for sport
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. chest — of your body
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. chest — a box
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. degree — temperature
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. board — a committee
  15. board — to get on
  16. court — of a king
  17. degree — from a university
  18. vault — a safe
  19. present — the time now
  20. mark — a grade
  21. chest — of your body
  22. present — there
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. degree — an amount

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