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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: degree · pop · pit · pound · calf · cell · spring · chip

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. spring — a coil
  3. degree — an amount
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. cell — in biology
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. pit — in a race
  10. pop — soda
  11. pop — to visit
  12. pop — music
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. spring — of water
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. spring — the season
  19. chip — for betting
  20. pit — a hole
  21. degree — temperature
  22. cell — a phone
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — in a computer

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