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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 120 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. game — a match
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — what's left
  5. march — music
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. game — wild animals
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. march — the month
  14. degree — an amount
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. chip — for betting
  18. rest — a break
  19. chip — to eat
  20. deal — to handle
  21. march — the month
  22. cell — in biology
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. degree — from a university

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