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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
468
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: straw · track · band · degree · leaves · row · roll · calf

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — temperature
  5. roll — a list
  6. band — a music group
  7. row — a line
  8. track — a song
  9. row — to paddle
  10. band — a ring
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. track — a path
  15. track — to keep track
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. degree — an amount
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. row — a quarrel

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