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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: field · can · chair · season · mug · spell · pitcher · present

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. season — in sport
  5. season — of the year
  6. mug — a cup
  7. present — the time now
  8. spell — letters
  9. mug — a face
  10. can — to be able to
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. mug — to rob
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. present — a gift
  15. spell — a short time
  16. chair — a leader
  17. can — a tin
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. spell — magic
  21. present — there
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. can — a tin

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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