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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: present · shower · toast · pass · key · degree · last · tube

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. present — a gift
  3. last — final
  4. key — the most important part
  5. degree — temperature
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. key — for a lock
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. tube — a container
  13. degree — from a university
  14. present — the time now
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. present — there
  17. shower — rain
  18. tube — the underground
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. toast — bread
  21. last — to go on
  22. pass — a permit
  23. last — finally
  24. key — in music

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