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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: bowl · mine · object · cold · arm · vault · patient · wound

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. vault — a safe
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. object — a thing
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. object — to protest
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. wound — an injury
  14. cold — not warm
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. mine — for digging
  22. wound — an injury
  23. object — an aim
  24. mine — an explosive

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