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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: lean · net · chip · field · bowl · press · vault · court

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. court — for sport
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. field — farmland
  6. press — newspapers
  7. field — a subject
  8. vault — a safe
  9. chip — for betting
  10. net — for catching
  11. field — for sport
  12. press — to push
  13. press — a publisher
  14. court — of law
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. court — of a king
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. chip — to eat
  20. lean — thin
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. net — after costs
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. net — in sport

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