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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. degree — from a university
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. degree — temperature
  5. ball — a great time
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. ball — a dance
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. game — a match
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. degree — an amount
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. game — a kind of play

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