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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: spell · toast · capital · key · rest · bark · race · wake

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. wake — a trail
  3. bark — to shout
  4. key — the most important part
  5. key — for a lock
  6. spell — letters
  7. race — a contest
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. capital — money
  10. race — the arms race
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. toast — bread
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. spell — magic
  18. key — in music
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. spell — a short time
  22. rest — what's left
  23. race — humankind
  24. rest — a break

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