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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 116 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: calf · cell · pound · degree · net · chair · rush · kid

  1. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. degree — from a university
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. net — for catching
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. degree — temperature
  7. degree — an amount
  8. kid — child
  9. net — in sport
  10. cell — a phone
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. pound — a weight
  13. cell — in biology
  14. chair — a leader
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. net — after costs
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rush — hurry
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. kid — to tease
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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