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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: racket · ground · kick · kid · cell · stock · date · track

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. kid — child
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. cell — in biology
  7. date — the fruit
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. kick — in football
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. kid — to tease
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. stock — shares
  15. stock — goods
  16. ground — crushed
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. ground — the earth
  19. track — a song
  20. track — a path
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. ground — a position
  23. cell — a phone
  24. track — to keep track

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