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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.

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 · last · ball · perch · field · rush · chair · spell

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. last — final
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. field — a subject
  5. perch — the fish
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. last — finally
  8. field — for sport
  9. spell — a short time
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. ball — a dance
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. spell — magic
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. spell — letters
  17. chair — a leader
  18. field — farmland
  19. rush — hurry
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. last — to go on
  22. content — happy
  23. content — the amount
  24. ball — a great time

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