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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 · roll · pitch · bat · rash · row · pound · lash

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. roll — a list
  4. bat — the animal
  5. rash — hasty
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. pound — a weight
  8. row — to paddle
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. roll — a cake
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pitch — completely
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. row — a line
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — on the skin

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