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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 124 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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. degree — from a university
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bound — tied together
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. date — the fruit
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. bound — certain
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bound — obliged
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. sharp — clever
  24. degree — an amount

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