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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: hide · chip · fall · lean · patient · vault · row · trunk

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. row — a line
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. lean — to bend
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. fall — to drop
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. fall — to drop
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. lean — thin
  13. fall — the season
  14. chip — to eat
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. chip — for betting
  17. vault — a safe
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. row — to paddle
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. trunk — of a car

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