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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 116 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: march · chair · mate · ground · track · firm · tear · snap

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. ground — a position
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. march — the month
  5. tear — from crying
  6. track — a song
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. track — to keep track
  10. snap — to click
  11. mate — to breed
  12. mate — a partner
  13. march — the month
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. firm — a company
  17. chair — a leader
  18. ground — the earth
  19. mate — a friend
  20. track — a path
  21. march — music
  22. ground — crushed
  23. firm — steady
  24. firm — decided

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