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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · suit · bat · mark · cell · field

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. field — farmland
  4. cell — a phone
  5. field — for sport
  6. suit — in cards
  7. content — the amount
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. content — happy
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cell — in biology
  13. suit — to fit
  14. mark — a trace
  15. mark — a grade
  16. suit — clothes
  17. field — a subject
  18. content — videos and posts

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