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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.

Make a worksheet

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: content · ball · net · cell · chest · saw · field · calf

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. chest — of your body
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. cell — in biology
  6. content — happy
  7. net — for catching
  8. net — after costs
  9. content — the amount
  10. chest — a box
  11. net — in sport
  12. ball — a great time
  13. field — farmland
  14. chest — of your body
  15. field — for sport
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. ball — a dance
  18. saw — the tool
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. cell — a phone
  23. saw — the tool
  24. field — a subject

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