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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: kick · clip · safe · rock · degree · chest · staff · bore

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. clip — a video
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. staff — employees
  6. kick — in football
  7. chest — a box
  8. degree — an amount
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. staff — a stick
  11. staff — employees
  12. rock — a stone
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. rock — music
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. chest — of your body
  18. clip — for paper
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bore — to tire
  22. chest — of your body
  23. clip — to cut
  24. degree — temperature

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