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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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. chair — a leader
  3. current — happening now
  4. deal — to handle
  5. court — of a king
  6. degree — from a university
  7. court — of law
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. degree — an amount
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. current — of water
  13. net — after costs
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. net — for catching
  16. stock — shares
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. court — for sport
  19. current — electric
  20. net — in sport
  21. degree — temperature
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. stock — goods

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