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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. mug — a cup
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. mug — to rob
  13. roll — a cake
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. degree — temperature
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. degree — from a university
  19. mug — a face
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. roll — a list
  24. kick — in football

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