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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 · racket · march · cell · wound · mine · vault

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. march — the month
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wound — an injury
  8. march — music
  9. cell — a phone
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. vault — a safe
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. wound — an injury
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. fork — in a road
  24. march — the month

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