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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
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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: sharp · spell · field · shower · date · suit · court · coach

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. spell — letters
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. shower — to wash
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — a subject
  7. spell — magic
  8. sharp — clever
  9. shower — rain
  10. field — for sport
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. court — for sport
  14. suit — clothes
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. suit — in cards
  20. date — the fruit
  21. court — of a king
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. suit — to fit
  24. spell — a short time

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