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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. rash — a series
  3. chest — a box
  4. rash — hasty
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. season — of the year
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. race — a contest
  12. season — in sport
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. race — humankind
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. band — a ring
  19. race — the arms race
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bat — the animal
  23. band — a music group
  24. bat — in an idiom

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