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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 120 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: degree · key · firm · squash · last · prune · cold · ball

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. degree — an amount
  3. key — in music
  4. prune — to trim
  5. degree — temperature
  6. ball — a dance
  7. key — for a lock
  8. prune — to trim
  9. key — the most important part
  10. ball — a great time
  11. firm — a company
  12. firm — decided
  13. last — final
  14. squash — the sport
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. squash — to crush
  17. degree — from a university
  18. cold — not warm
  19. last — finally
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. firm — steady
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. last — to go on

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