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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 120 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 · capital · row · lash · face · pitcher · bat · bear

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. face — to confront
  3. face — to point toward
  4. bat — the animal
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. row — to paddle
  7. capital — money
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. capital — a city
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. face — part of the head
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — the animal

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