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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. degree — an amount
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. degree — from a university
  5. march — the month
  6. key — in music
  7. march — the month
  8. race — the arms race
  9. chest — a box
  10. mark — a grade
  11. key — the most important part
  12. key — for a lock
  13. cell — in biology
  14. mark — a trace
  15. chest — of your body
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. march — music
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. race — a contest
  21. cell — a phone
  22. race — humankind
  23. chest — of your body
  24. degree — temperature

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