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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 116 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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. club — for dancing
  3. field — a subject
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. field — for sport
  6. spell — a short time
  7. content — happy
  8. mark — a grade
  9. band — a music group
  10. spell — magic
  11. band — a ring
  12. club — a group
  13. court — of a king
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. court — of law
  18. club — for golf
  19. content — the amount
  20. field — farmland
  21. mark — a trace
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. court — for sport

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