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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
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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: court · cap · last · rash · safe · land · chair · mark

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — a leader
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. last — finally
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. land — a country
  8. court — of law
  9. land — ground
  10. last — final
  11. cap — a hat
  12. land — to come down
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. court — for sport
  15. last — to go on
  16. court — of a king
  17. cap — of ice
  18. mark — a grade
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. rash — a series
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. rash — hasty
  24. cap — a lid

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