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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: fork · cap · mug · chair · present · content · lie · field

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. field — a subject
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. content — the amount
  6. present — a gift
  7. mug — a face
  8. lie — to recline
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. mug — a cup
  11. cap — a hat
  12. field — farmland
  13. present — there
  14. cap — a lid
  15. field — for sport
  16. content — happy
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. chair — a leader
  20. present — the time now
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. fork — in a road
  23. cap — of ice
  24. mug — to rob

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