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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: net · snap · stick · date · degree · kid · calf · pitch

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. snap — to click
  5. degree — from a university
  6. net — in sport
  7. kid — to tease
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. pitch — completely
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — after costs
  17. date — the fruit
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. degree — temperature
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. degree — an amount

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