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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 · date · wax · present · rush · race · pit · craft

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. toast — bread
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. rush — hurry
  6. craft — boats
  7. pit — in a race
  8. present — a gift
  9. craft — a skill
  10. race — the arms race
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. race — humankind
  13. present — the time now
  14. date — the fruit
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. pit — a hole
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. present — there
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. wax — to grow
  24. race — a contest

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