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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cap · patient · bark · vault · chest · land · fan · tube

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. tube — a container
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. bark — to shout
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. vault — a safe
  10. chest — of your body
  11. land — a country
  12. cap — of ice
  13. cap — a hat
  14. chest — a box
  15. cap — a lid
  16. tube — the underground
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. chest — of your body
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — ground
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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