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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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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: rest · plane · wave · straw · cold · patient · vault · cell

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. rest — what's left
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. rest — a break
  9. cell — in biology
  10. rest — what's left
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. plane — a tool
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. cell — a phone
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cold — an illness
  24. wave — of the sea

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