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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 120 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: cap · tear · chair · content · season · march

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. season — of the year
  3. march — the month
  4. chair — a leader
  5. tear — from crying
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. march — music
  8. season — in sport
  9. march — the month
  10. content — happy
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. cap — of ice
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cap — a hat
  16. tear — to rip
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. chair — a professorship

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