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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. degree — from a university
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. branch — a division
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. degree — temperature
  8. prune — to trim
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. mark — a grade
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. mark — a trace
  17. degree — an amount
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. deal — to handle
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. cold — not warm
  23. prune — to trim
  24. cold — an illness

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