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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 116 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: hand · field · calf · snap · racket · fan · degree · mug

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. mug — to rob
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. hand — in cards
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. snap — to click
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — from a university
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. mug — a face
  17. field — farmland
  18. degree — temperature
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. hand — help
  24. mug — a cup

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