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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: cue · spell · pit · tear · land · chest · mark · chair

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. cue — a signal
  4. land — ground
  5. spell — magic
  6. cue — for pool
  7. spell — letters
  8. chair — a leader
  9. mark — a grade
  10. spell — a short time
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — from crying
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. mark — a trace
  16. cue — a hint
  17. pit — a hole
  18. chest — of your body
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. tear — to rip
  22. land — a country
  23. land — to come down
  24. pit — in a race

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