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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: season · field · stock · spell · court · pitch · chair · mug

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. spell — magic
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. court — of law
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — for sport
  7. mug — a face
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. stock — shares
  11. mug — a cup
  12. field — farmland
  13. spell — a short time
  14. mug — to rob
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. season — of the year
  19. court — of a king
  20. pitch — completely
  21. spell — letters
  22. stock — goods
  23. court — for sport
  24. season — in sport

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