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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: chest · object · content · mark · chair · bat · stem · pass

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mark — a grade
  6. object — an aim
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. content — the amount
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. content — happy
  13. chair — a leader
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. bat — the animal
  16. object — to protest
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. pass — a permit
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. chest — a box
  22. mark — a trace
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. stem — to come from

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