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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: face · fall · game · tear · stock · patient · spring · vault

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. fall — to drop
  3. spring — the season
  4. stock — shares
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. face — part of the head
  7. face — to point toward
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stock — goods
  10. tear — from crying
  11. spring — a coil
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. tear — from crying
  14. face — to confront
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. spring — of water
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. game — wild animals
  19. game — a match
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. vault — a safe
  23. fall — the season
  24. tear — to rip

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