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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. saw — the tool
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. board — to get on
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. degree — an amount
  9. saw — the tool
  10. mine — for digging
  11. ground — a position
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. bore — to tire
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bore — to drill
  18. degree — temperature
  19. board — a committee
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — the earth
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. mine — belonging to me

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