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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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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: bass · chip · march · content · court · tear · chest · mark

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. march — music
  3. mark — a trace
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. chest — of your body
  7. court — of a king
  8. court — of law
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. bass — low music
  11. tear — from crying
  12. chip — for betting
  13. court — for sport
  14. bass — the fish
  15. march — the month
  16. tear — to rip
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. mark — a grade
  20. chest — of your body
  21. march — the month
  22. chip — to eat
  23. chest — a box
  24. content — happy

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