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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chair · degree · straw · hide · spell · calf · rule · object

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. spell — letters
  3. rule — government
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. degree — temperature
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. degree — from a university
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. rule — a law
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. object — to protest
  14. chair — a leader
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. spell — magic
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. spell — a short time
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. object — an aim
  22. object — a thing
  23. degree — an amount
  24. rule — to rule out

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