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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: temple · chest · stick · board · fan · vault · patient · file

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. file — a tool
  3. chest — of your body
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. chest — of your body
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. vault — a safe
  14. board — to get on
  15. board — a committee
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. chest — a box
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a document
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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