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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: fork · vault · mug · press · patient · shower · tear · drill

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. tear — from crying
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. shower — to wash
  5. tear — from crying
  6. press — newspapers
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. press — to push
  9. drill — a practice
  10. press — a publisher
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. vault — a safe
  13. mug — a face
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. drill — army training
  18. tear — to rip
  19. fork — in a road
  20. shower — rain
  21. mug — a cup
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. mug — to rob
  24. drill — the 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