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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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Word bank
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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: bat · sharp · mark · date · content · cue · pop · chair

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. cue — a signal
  4. pop — music
  5. mark — a trace
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. content — happy
  8. cue — a hint
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. bat — the animal
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. content — the amount
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. chair — a leader
  17. pop — to visit
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. pop — soda
  22. cue — for pool
  23. sharp — clever
  24. date — the fruit

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