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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: court · tear · mate · craft · racket · track · hide · cell

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. tear — from crying
  3. mate — a partner
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. cell — a phone
  7. court — of law
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. cell — in biology
  12. tear — from crying
  13. craft — boats
  14. mate — a friend
  15. court — for sport
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. tear — to rip
  18. track — a song
  19. craft — a skill
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. court — of a king
  22. track — to keep track
  23. mate — to breed
  24. track — a path

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