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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: cell · season · club · ground · pass · bay · press · land

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. press — a publisher
  3. club — a group
  4. ground — the earth
  5. ground — a position
  6. press — to push
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. ground — crushed
  10. pass — a permit
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. club — for golf
  13. cell — in biology
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. club — for dancing
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. press — newspapers
  18. land — a country
  19. season — in sport
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. land — to come down
  22. cell — a phone
  23. season — of the year
  24. land — ground

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