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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. rule — a law
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. degree — an amount
  8. hand — help
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. lean — thin
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. rash — hasty
  15. degree — from a university
  16. lean — to bend
  17. kick — in football
  18. hand — in cards
  19. wind — moving air
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. rule — government
  22. wind — moving air
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — on the skin

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