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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: rest · cap · chair · stand · court · wound · mark · date

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. rest — what's left
  3. cap — of ice
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. court — of law
  6. stand — to bear
  7. rest — a break
  8. wound — an injury
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. rest — what's left
  12. mark — a trace
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. cap — a hat
  17. cap — a lid
  18. court — of a king
  19. wound — an injury
  20. court — for sport
  21. mark — a grade
  22. chair — a leader
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. date — the fruit

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