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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. toast — bread
  7. content — happy
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. tube — the underground
  10. pit — in a race
  11. pit — a hole
  12. sharp — clever
  13. cap — a lid
  14. race — humankind
  15. tube — a container
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. race — the arms race
  18. content — the amount
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. cap — of ice
  23. wake — a trail
  24. cap — a hat

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