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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: capital · hide · board · straw · calf · degree · clip · deal

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. board — a committee
  4. degree — from a university
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. capital — money
  12. clip — for paper
  13. degree — an amount
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. deal — to handle
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. capital — a city
  18. board — to get on
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. clip — a video
  22. degree — temperature
  23. clip — to cut
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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