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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: trunk · bowl · scale · tube · content · toast · wake · race

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. race — a contest
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. race — humankind
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. wake — a trail
  8. tube — the underground
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. content — happy
  17. scale — in music
  18. tube — a container
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. content — the amount
  21. race — the arms race
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. scale — size or range

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