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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. spell — letters
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. degree — an amount
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. dip — to sink
  10. cue — a hint
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. degree — from a university
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. spell — a short time
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bat — the animal
  21. cue — a signal
  22. branch — a division
  23. cue — for pool
  24. spell — magic

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