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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: calf · court · arm · bound · kid · degree · staff · saw

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. kid — child
  3. court — of a king
  4. staff — employees
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. staff — a stick
  7. court — for sport
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. bound — certain
  10. kid — to tease
  11. degree — temperature
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. bound — tied together
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bound — obliged
  18. court — of law
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. saw — the tool
  21. staff — employees
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. degree — an amount
  24. degree — from a university

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