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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. scale — in music
  6. scale — size or range
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. pit — in a race
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. craft — a skill
  11. pit — a hole
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. craft — boats
  14. cell — a phone
  15. chip — for betting
  16. chip — to eat
  17. degree — from a university
  18. band — a ring
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. band — a music group
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. degree — temperature

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