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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. 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. stand — to bear
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. kid — child
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. degree — from a university
  8. key — in music
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. degree — an amount
  11. key — for a lock
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. rash — hasty
  14. key — the most important part
  15. squash — the sport
  16. kid — to tease
  17. snap — to click
  18. degree — temperature
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. squash — to crush
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. rash — a series
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  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