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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: rock · wax · race · toast · bat · net · bark · vault

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — to grow
  4. race — the arms race
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. vault — a safe
  7. race — humankind
  8. net — in sport
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. race — a contest
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — after costs
  23. bat — the animal
  24. rock — to move gently

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