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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: degree · straw · calf · cap · arm · swing · bound · snap

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bound — certain
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. degree — an amount
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. bound — tied together
  8. cap — a lid
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. degree — from a university
  11. swing — in golf
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. degree — temperature
  14. swing — music
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. cap — a hat
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. cap — of ice
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. bound — obliged
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. swing — to play on

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