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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: vault · mate · bass · content · press · prune · chair · hand

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. vault — a safe
  5. mate — a partner
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. press — to push
  8. bass — low music
  9. content — the amount
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a friend
  12. hand — help
  13. content — happy
  14. chair — a leader
  15. press — newspapers
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. hand — in cards
  20. prune — to trim
  21. press — a publisher
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bass — the fish

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