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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: object · vault · degree · season · temple · calf · kick · root

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. vault — a safe
  3. root — of a word
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. root — of a plant
  6. degree — an amount
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. degree — temperature
  10. object — an aim
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. root — the cause
  13. degree — from a university
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. kick — in football
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. object — a thing
  19. season — of the year
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. season — in sport
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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