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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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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: field · fork · pit · calf · degree · clip · cue · perch

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. cue — a signal
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pit — a hole
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. degree — temperature
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. field — farmland
  11. cue — a hint
  12. degree — from a university
  13. fork — in a road
  14. field — a subject
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. field — for sport
  17. degree — an amount
  18. pit — in a race
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. cue — for pool
  22. clip — a video
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. perch — the fish

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