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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
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: season · suit · wind · rule · court · field · content · hand

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wind — moving air
  3. rule — government
  4. field — a subject
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — in sport
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. court — for sport
  10. field — for sport
  11. suit — in cards
  12. field — farmland
  13. court — of a king
  14. suit — to fit
  15. court — of law
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — in cards
  18. wind — moving air
  19. content — the amount
  20. rule — a law
  21. content — happy
  22. suit — clothes
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. season — to add flavour

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