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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: rock · cell · vault · last · patient · pass

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. last — final
  3. cell — a phone
  4. rock — music
  5. last — finally
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. last — to go on
  13. cell — in biology
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. pass — a permit
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. rock — a stone

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