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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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Word bank
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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: track · lash · pop · ruler · mate · file · racket · tear

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. mate — a friend
  3. pop — music
  4. mate — to breed
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. track — to keep track
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. file — a document
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. tear — from crying
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. mate — a partner
  16. tear — to rip
  17. track — a path
  18. file — a tool
  19. pop — soda
  20. tear — from crying
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. pop — to visit
  24. file — a line of people

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