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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: pass · stem · tear · straw · band · cue · chair · march

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. march — the month
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. tear — from crying
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. march — the month
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. march — music
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. chair — a leader
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. cue — a signal
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. cue — for pool
  17. band — a music group
  18. stem — to come from
  19. tear — to rip
  20. pass — a permit
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. tear — from crying
  24. band — a ring

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