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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 116 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: ground · vault · drill · patient · court · band · current · fork

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. current — electric
  5. ground — crushed
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. court — of law
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. fork — in a road
  11. court — for sport
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. band — a music group
  14. ground — the earth
  15. drill — the tool
  16. court — of a king
  17. current — happening now
  18. current — of water
  19. drill — a practice
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. ground — a position
  22. band — a ring
  23. vault — a safe
  24. drill — army training

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