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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. club — a group
  3. degree — an amount
  4. rush — hurry
  5. degree — from a university
  6. mate — a friend
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. club — for dancing
  9. mate — to breed
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. shower — rain
  13. club — for golf
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. degree — temperature
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. mate — a partner
  18. calf — a young animal

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