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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: mate · degree · calf · wave · temple · spell · clip · deal

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. deal — to handle
  5. spell — a short time
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. degree — an amount
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — to cut
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. degree — temperature
  14. mate — a partner
  15. spell — magic
  16. mate — to breed
  17. clip — a video
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. degree — from a university
  22. spell — letters
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. wave — with your hand

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