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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: rush · trunk · bat · race · rock · content · toast · rest

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. content — happy
  5. rest — what's left
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. rest — a break
  9. bat — the animal
  10. rock — music
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. rock — a stone
  13. rest — what's left
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — the arms race
  16. toast — bread
  17. race — humankind
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. content — the amount
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. rush — hurry
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. rush — to hurry

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