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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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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: toast · bat · rest · present · race · plane

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. present — there
  3. rest — what's left
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — a break
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. race — humankind
  10. bat — the animal
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. race — the arms race
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. present — the time now
  15. toast — bread
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. plane — a tool
  18. present — a gift

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