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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 120 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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. rest — a break
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — an amount
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. season — of the year
  8. season — in sport
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. rest — what's left
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. root — of a word
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. root — the cause
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. ball — a great time
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. rest — what's left
  21. ball — a dance
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. degree — temperature
  24. root — of a plant

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