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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: vault · patient · cold · can · race · craft

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. can — a tin
  4. race — the arms race
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. craft — a skill
  7. can — to be able to
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. cold — an illness
  10. can — a tin
  11. craft — boats
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. cold — not warm
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. vault — a safe
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. race — a contest
  18. race — humankind

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