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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: rush · patient · vault · date · hand · ground · rash · present

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. rash — a series
  3. ground — a position
  4. ground — crushed
  5. rush — hurry
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. present — there
  10. present — a gift
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. hand — in cards
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. rash — hasty
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. date — the fruit
  19. ground — the earth
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. present — the time now
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. hand — help
  24. rash — on the skin

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