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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: season · chair · ball · field · mate · rule

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. ball — a great time
  3. mate — a friend
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. ball — a dance
  6. mate — a partner
  7. season — in sport
  8. field — a subject
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. rule — government
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. field — farmland
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. season — of the year
  15. rule — a law
  16. chair — a leader
  17. field — for sport
  18. mate — to breed

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