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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: content · racket · bound · current · mate · season · pitch · track

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. season — of the year
  3. current — of water
  4. content — happy
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. content — the amount
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. bound — certain
  10. track — a song
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. bound — tied together
  14. mate — a partner
  15. track — to keep track
  16. mate — a friend
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. season — in sport
  19. current — happening now
  20. mate — to breed
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. track — a path
  23. bound — obliged
  24. pitch — completely

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