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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 120 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: race · degree · calf · bark · present · track

  1. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. present — a gift
  3. degree — from a university
  4. track — to keep track
  5. present — there
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bark — to shout
  9. degree — an amount
  10. track — a path
  11. race — humankind
  12. race — a contest
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. track — a song
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. race — the arms race
  17. present — the time now
  18. bark — a dog's sound

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