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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 116 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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. row — to paddle
  3. net — after costs
  4. spell — letters
  5. pass — a permit
  6. net — in sport
  7. spell — a short time
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. degree — temperature
  11. spell — magic
  12. land — to come down
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. row — a line
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. degree — an amount
  19. degree — from a university
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. land — ground
  22. land — a country
  23. net — for catching
  24. coach — a trainer

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