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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 had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. race — a contest
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. wind — moving air
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. rest — a break
  11. degree — from a university
  12. hand — in cards
  13. rest — what's left
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. hand — help
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wind — moving air
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. race — the arms race
  20. degree — an amount
  21. rest — what's left
  22. race — humankind
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. degree — temperature

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