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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. tube — a container
  3. toast — bread
  4. bore — to tire
  5. roll — a list
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bore — to drill
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. tube — the underground
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. race — humankind
  13. row — a line
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. roll — a cake
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. race — the arms race
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. row — to paddle
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rash — a series
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. rash — on the skin

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