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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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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: kid · lash · can · bark · racket · track · tear · content

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. can — a tin
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. kid — to tease
  9. can — to be able to
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. tear — from crying
  13. content — happy
  14. track — a path
  15. track — a song
  16. kid — child
  17. track — to keep track
  18. content — the amount
  19. tear — to rip
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. can — a tin
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. tear — from crying

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