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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 120 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chair — a leader
  3. court — of a king
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — a country
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. field — for sport
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. field — a subject
  14. can — a tin
  15. content — happy
  16. court — for sport
  17. can — a tin
  18. field — farmland
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. court — of law
  21. content — the amount
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. land — ground
  24. can — to be able to

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