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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 · kid · tear · present · ball · bark · net · fall

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. kid — to tease
  8. present — the time now
  9. fall — to drop
  10. tear — to rip
  11. net — after costs
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. net — for catching
  14. present — a gift
  15. fall — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bark — to shout
  20. present — there
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. ball — a dance
  23. net — in sport
  24. ball — a great time

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