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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: plane · last · temple · squash · toast · root · bat · rest

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. last — final
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. root — of a plant
  6. root — of a word
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. rest — what's left
  10. toast — bread
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. squash — the sport
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. rest — what's left
  15. last — finally
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. last — to go on
  19. bat — the animal
  20. squash — to crush
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. root — the cause
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. plane — a tool

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