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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: rest · fall · calf · mine · sharp · stand · mark · degree

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mark — a grade
  3. fall — to drop
  4. degree — an amount
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rest — what's left
  7. stand — to bear
  8. sharp — clever
  9. degree — temperature
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. rest — a break
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mine — for digging
  17. fall — to drop
  18. mark — a trace
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. rest — what's left
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. fall — the season

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