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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.

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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: field · chest · ruler · club · bowl · roll · content · mouse

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. roll — a list
  5. club — for golf
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. field — farmland
  8. content — happy
  9. field — a subject
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. chest — a box
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — the amount
  15. chest — of your body
  16. club — a group
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. club — for dancing
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. field — for sport
  24. roll — on a roll

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