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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: game · file · snap · rash · calf · drill · degree · court

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. game — a match
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. degree — an amount
  5. rash — hasty
  6. file — a document
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. court — of law
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. snap — to click
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. court — for sport
  13. rash — a series
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. file — a line of people
  16. degree — temperature
  17. game — wild animals
  18. degree — from a university
  19. drill — army training
  20. drill — the tool
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. file — a tool
  23. drill — a practice
  24. rash — on the skin

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