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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: straw · calf · degree · sharp · club · last · face · lean

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. last — to go on
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. degree — from a university
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. degree — temperature
  8. face — to point toward
  9. club — a group
  10. last — final
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. degree — an amount
  13. club — for golf
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. club — for dancing
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. face — part of the head
  19. lean — thin
  20. lean — to bend
  21. sharp — clever
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. last — finally
  24. calf — a young animal

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