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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: tube · bat · fan · toast · last · pound · racket · vault

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. toast — bread
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. last — to go on
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. vault — a safe
  9. bat — the animal
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. last — finally
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. last — final
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. pound — a weight
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. tube — a container

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