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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: board · present · spring · net · chair · content · vault · face

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. chair — a leader
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. vault — a safe
  5. present — there
  6. net — after costs
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. face — part of the head
  9. present — the time now
  10. content — the amount
  11. content — happy
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — the season
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. spring — a coil
  16. board — a committee
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. board — to get on
  19. face — to point toward
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — in sport
  22. face — to confront
  23. present — a gift
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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