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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: tube · sharp · wound · chip · content · court · field · band

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. content — the amount
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. court — for sport
  7. wound — an injury
  8. sharp — clever
  9. field — farmland
  10. band — a ring
  11. tube — a container
  12. wound — an injury
  13. tube — the underground
  14. band — a music group
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. chip — for betting
  17. chip — to eat
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. court — of a king
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. content — happy

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