ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

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: mate · spell · suit · field · land · squash · chair · cell

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. cell — a phone
  3. spell — magic
  4. mate — a friend
  5. spell — a short time
  6. field — for sport
  7. suit — to fit
  8. suit — in cards
  9. land — to come down
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. field — a subject
  14. land — ground
  15. mate — a partner
  16. mate — to breed
  17. squash — to crush
  18. field — farmland
  19. suit — clothes
  20. spell — letters
  21. land — a country
  22. chair — a leader
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cell — in biology

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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