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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: tear · chest · pass · band · jam · sharp · bore · cue

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. pass — a permit
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. cue — for pool
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — clever
  13. tear — from crying
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. bore — to drill
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a music group
  18. cue — a hint
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. chest — of your body
  21. band — a ring
  22. cue — a signal
  23. bore — to tire
  24. chest — a box

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