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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fall · patient · rule · stand · mine · hand · pitcher · vault

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mine — for digging
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. fall — to drop
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. rule — government
  9. stand — to bear
  10. hand — in cards
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. fall — to drop
  17. hand — help
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. vault — a safe
  21. fall — the season
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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