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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. degree — an amount
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. bark — to shout
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. hand — help
  8. degree — temperature
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. hand — in cards
  13. degree — from a university
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. row — a line
  20. kick — in football
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. row — to paddle
  24. kick — with a leg

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