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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. deal — to handle
  4. degree — temperature
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. kid — to tease
  15. prune — to trim
  16. degree — an amount
  17. snap — to click
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. degree — from a university
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. prune — to trim
  24. deal — a big deal

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