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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.

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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 · press · ground · patient · vault · plane · cell · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. face — part of the head
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. face — to point toward
  5. vault — a safe
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. ground — a position
  10. plane — a tool
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cell — a phone
  13. press — to push
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. cell — in biology
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. press — newspapers
  18. face — to confront
  19. ground — crushed
  20. press — a publisher
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. ground — the earth
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. chair — a leader

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