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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. kid — to tease
  4. rash — a series
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. degree — from a university
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. degree — temperature
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. degree — an amount
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. wake — a trail
  24. rash — hasty

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