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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 · cold · roll · pop · bound · saw · press · coach

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. press — a publisher
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. saw — the tool
  6. content — the amount
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. cold — an illness
  9. press — to push
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. bound — certain
  13. saw — the tool
  14. pop — to visit
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. roll — a list
  18. content — happy
  19. cold — not warm
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bound — tied together
  22. pop — soda
  23. pop — music
  24. roll — a cake

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