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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. 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. calf — a young animal
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. degree — temperature
  4. track — a path
  5. degree — an amount
  6. saw — the tool
  7. track — a song
  8. degree — from a university
  9. object — a thing
  10. track — to keep track
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. object — an aim
  14. stock — shares
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. clip — to cut
  17. object — to protest
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — a video
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. saw — the tool
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. 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