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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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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. wound — an injury
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cell — a phone
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. cell — in biology
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. degree — temperature
  12. degree — an amount
  13. lie — to recline
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. degree — from a university
  16. wound — an injury
  17. toast — bread
  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