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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: current · jam · race · chest · press · season · content · saw

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. season — of the year
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. press — a publisher
  6. press — to push
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. chest — of your body
  9. content — the amount
  10. chest — a box
  11. race — a contest
  12. content — happy
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. saw — the tool
  15. season — in sport
  16. chest — of your body
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. current — electric
  19. current — of water
  20. race — the arms race
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. race — humankind
  23. press — newspapers
  24. saw — the tool

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