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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: vault · cell · lean · mine · key · fan · patient · roll

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. lean — thin
  6. roll — a cake
  7. key — for a lock
  8. cell — in biology
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. roll — a list
  13. vault — a safe
  14. cell — a phone
  15. key — in music
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. key — the most important part
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. lean — to bend
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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