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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: press · ball · net · degree · squash · current · mine · mate

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. degree — temperature
  5. squash — to crush
  6. current — electric
  7. mate — to breed
  8. mine — for digging
  9. degree — from a university
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. degree — an amount
  12. squash — the sport
  13. mate — a friend
  14. net — in sport
  15. mate — a partner
  16. current — of water
  17. ball — a great time
  18. press — a publisher
  19. net — for catching
  20. current — happening now
  21. press — to push
  22. net — after costs
  23. press — newspapers
  24. ball — a dance

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