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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 120 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: chip · calf · patient · track · vault · land · racket · last

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. land — a country
  3. last — to go on
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. land — ground
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. track — to keep track
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. last — finally
  13. last — final
  14. land — to come down
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. track — a song
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. chip — to eat
  19. chip — for betting
  20. track — a path
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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