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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. degree — temperature
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — from a university
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. saw — the tool
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. race — the arms race
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. dip — to sink
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. race — humankind
  18. saw — the tool
  19. wound — an injury
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — of ice
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. race — a contest
  24. cap — a lid

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