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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: coach · file · straw · race · calf · game · degree · rule

  1. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. race — humankind
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. game — wild animals
  12. degree — from a university
  13. file — a document
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — a contest
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — an amount
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. rule — government
  20. rule — a law
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. game — a match
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a line of people

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