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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 · key · straw · vault · cap · patient · wound · cabinet

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. ground — crushed
  4. wound — an injury
  5. cap — a hat
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. cap — a lid
  9. key — for a lock
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. vault — a safe
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. ground — the earth
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. cap — of ice
  20. ground — a position
  21. key — the most important part
  22. key — in music
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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