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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: cabinet · racket · lash · mate · cell · bark · pit · net

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. pit — a hole
  5. cell — in biology
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. net — after costs
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. cell — a phone
  10. net — in sport
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. mate — a partner
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. mate — a friend
  18. bark — to shout
  19. mate — to breed
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. net — for catching
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. pit — in a race

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