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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: cabinet · kick · stem · racket · calf · degree · pitcher · trunk

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. stem — to come from
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. degree — temperature
  19. degree — from a university
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. racket — for tennis

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