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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. kid — child
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. snap — to click
  7. degree — temperature
  8. kid — to tease
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. mark — a trace
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. bass — the fish
  15. court — for sport
  16. degree — an amount
  17. court — of a king
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. court — of law
  20. degree — from a university
  21. mark — a grade
  22. bass — low music
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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