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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: court · plane · chair · content · mine · lie · spell · fine

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. chair — a leader
  3. spell — a short time
  4. fine — all right
  5. court — of a king
  6. spell — magic
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. lie — to recline
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. content — happy
  17. court — of law
  18. content — the amount
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. fine — high quality
  22. spell — letters
  23. mine — for digging
  24. plane — a tool

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