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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've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. firm — a company
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. cold — not warm
  6. degree — an amount
  7. degree — temperature
  8. firm — steady
  9. degree — from a university
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. game — a match
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. firm — decided
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. game — wild animals
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. cold — an illness
  24. arm — a part of something

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