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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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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: tear · content · snap · rest · chair · chip

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chip — for betting
  4. content — the amount
  5. rest — a break
  6. content — happy
  7. rest — what's left
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. chip — to eat
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. tear — to rip
  14. rest — what's left
  15. snap — to click
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — from crying
  18. content — videos and posts

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