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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 120 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: season · net · field · cue · spell · content · stock · perch

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. spell — letters
  3. perch — the fish
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. season — of the year
  6. spell — a short time
  7. cue — a hint
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — goods
  11. content — the amount
  12. net — for catching
  13. season — in sport
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. field — farmland
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. field — for sport
  19. cue — a signal
  20. field — a subject
  21. net — in sport
  22. cue — for pool
  23. spell — magic
  24. content — happy

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