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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: squash · wave · nail · last · track · calf · degree · game

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. game — a match
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. squash — to crush
  6. track — a song
  7. track — a path
  8. degree — temperature
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. track — to keep track
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. squash — the sport
  15. last — finally
  16. degree — from a university
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. degree — an amount
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. last — to go on

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