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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: bark · tube · pass · race · cell · stand · toast · bat

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. toast — bread
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. pass — a permit
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. cell — in biology
  10. race — a contest
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. stand — to bear
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bark — to shout
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. tube — a container
  17. race — the arms race
  18. race — humankind
  19. bat — the animal
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. cell — a phone
  23. tube — the underground
  24. bat — for baseball

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