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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: squash · deal · mate · prune · scale · bound · mine · key

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. bound — tied together
  4. scale — in music
  5. key — for a lock
  6. prune — to trim
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. squash — to crush
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. mate — a partner
  12. mate — a friend
  13. prune — to trim
  14. deal — to handle
  15. bound — obliged
  16. squash — the sport
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. scale — size or range
  19. bound — certain
  20. key — the most important part
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. key — in music
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mine — for digging

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