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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: pass · bound · kid · press · spell · chair · bat · season

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. spell — magic
  3. press — a publisher
  4. kid — child
  5. season — of the year
  6. spell — a short time
  7. pass — a permit
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. kid — to tease
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. season — in sport
  14. bound — tied together
  15. bound — certain
  16. press — newspapers
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. bat — the animal
  20. chair — a leader
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. press — to push
  24. pass — to succeed

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