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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.

Make a worksheet

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: bound · club · march · season · pit · content · press · cold

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. season — in sport
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. season — of the year
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. pit — a hole
  8. content — the amount
  9. march — the month
  10. press — a publisher
  11. club — a group
  12. press — to push
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bound — tied together
  15. march — music
  16. press — newspapers
  17. content — happy
  18. bound — certain
  19. pit — in a race
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. bound — obliged
  22. club — for golf
  23. cold — an illness
  24. march — the month

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