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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. degree — an amount
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. can — a tin
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. degree — from a university
  7. root — of a word
  8. drill — the tool
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. drill — a practice
  12. squash — the sport
  13. squash — to crush
  14. mark — a trace
  15. can — to be able to
  16. root — the cause
  17. drill — army training
  18. root — of a plant
  19. can — a tin
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. degree — temperature
  22. mark — a grade
  23. stem — to come from
  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