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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a match
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. court — of a king
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. wake — a trail
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — from a university
  19. court — of law
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. court — for sport
  23. degree — an amount
  24. kick — in football

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