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

Word bank: calf · race · trunk · march · toast · degree

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. toast — bread
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. degree — temperature
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. race — a contest
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. race — humankind
  11. march — the month
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. degree — an amount
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. race — the arms race
  17. march — music
  18. march — the month

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