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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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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 · cold · kick · degree · suit · field · straw · calf

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. cold — not warm
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. cold — an illness
  7. degree — from a university
  8. field — for sport
  9. degree — temperature
  10. suit — clothes
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. suit — in cards
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. rest — a break
  16. suit — to fit
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — a subject
  21. rest — what's left
  22. degree — an amount
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. kick — in football

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