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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: season · suit · degree · calf · race · chair

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. race — a contest
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. race — the arms race
  10. suit — in cards
  11. degree — an amount
  12. season — in sport
  13. suit — to fit
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. race — humankind
  16. degree — temperature
  17. season — of the year
  18. suit — clothes

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