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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: straw · arm · saw · calf · row · patient · vault · plane

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. saw — the tool
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. row — to paddle
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. row — a line
  16. vault — a safe
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. plane — a tool

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