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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — help
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. clip — for paper
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. clip — a video
  10. degree — an amount
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rush — hurry
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. hand — in cards
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. clip — to cut
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. degree — from a university
  24. cabinet — ministers

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