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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. club — for dancing
  3. pop — to visit
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. pop — soda
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — a series
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rest — what's left
  13. degree — temperature
  14. rest — what's left
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. club — for golf
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. club — a group
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. pop — music
  24. rest — a break

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