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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: chair · content · court · file · tear · cue · rash · root

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. court — of a king
  3. file — a document
  4. root — of a word
  5. content — the amount
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. file — a line of people
  8. root — of a plant
  9. tear — to rip
  10. cue — a hint
  11. chair — a leader
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. cue — a signal
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — from crying
  16. root — the cause
  17. court — of law
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. court — for sport
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. rash — a series
  23. content — happy
  24. cue — for pool

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