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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 · row · patient · squash · sharp · scale · dip · last

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. dip — to sink
  6. last — finally
  7. vault — a safe
  8. row — to paddle
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. squash — to crush
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. last — to go on
  19. last — final
  20. squash — the sport
  21. sharp — clever
  22. scale — in music
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. row — a line

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