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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
468
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: spell · content · ball · suit · wind · field · chair · temple

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. chair — a leader
  5. content — happy
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. field — for sport
  10. ball — a great time
  11. field — a subject
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. suit — to fit
  16. spell — magic
  17. suit — clothes
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spell — letters
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. suit — in cards
  23. ball — a dance
  24. content — the amount

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