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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: bass · press · calf · field · squash · lean · degree · key

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — from a university
  3. key — the most important part
  4. press — to push
  5. press — newspapers
  6. squash — to crush
  7. key — for a lock
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. bass — the fish
  12. degree — temperature
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. squash — the sport
  16. press — a publisher
  17. bass — low music
  18. field — a subject
  19. lean — thin
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. lean — to bend
  22. field — farmland
  23. key — in music
  24. field — for sport

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