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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: squash · object · cell · wound · pass · ball · firm · key

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. object — an aim
  4. firm — a company
  5. squash — the sport
  6. key — for a lock
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. firm — steady
  9. wound — an injury
  10. cell — a phone
  11. key — the most important part
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. key — in music
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. ball — a great time
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. object — a thing
  19. firm — decided
  20. cell — in biology
  21. pass — a permit
  22. object — to protest
  23. squash — to crush
  24. pass — to spend time

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