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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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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: race · band · patient · chest · craft · rush · vault · arm

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. race — the arms race
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. vault — a safe
  5. band — a music group
  6. craft — a skill
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. chest — a box
  9. race — humankind
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. craft — boats
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. race — a contest
  18. chest — of your body
  19. rush — hurry
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. band — a ring
  24. chest — of your body

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