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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 120 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: fall · file · degree · deal · calf · firm · bowl · hand

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. degree — temperature
  8. deal — to handle
  9. file — a document
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. fall — to drop
  12. hand — help
  13. degree — an amount
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. hand — in cards
  19. firm — steady
  20. file — a tool
  21. firm — decided
  22. degree — from a university
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. file — a line of people

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