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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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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 · lash · toast · tear · mine · rock · court · bat

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. tear — to rip
  4. toast — bread
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. court — of a king
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. court — of law
  13. rock — a stone
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. mine — for digging
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bat — the animal
  22. rock — music
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. court — for sport

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