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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: fork · patient · vault · straw · rest · chest

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. rest — what's left
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fork — in a road
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. chest — of your body
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. rest — a break
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. chest — a box
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. vault — a safe
  17. chest — of your body
  18. vault — an arched ceiling

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