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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chip · roll · bark · nail · chair · court · clip · prune

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. chip — for betting
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. clip — for paper
  5. chair — a leader
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. court — for sport
  9. court — of law
  10. roll — a cake
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. court — of a king
  13. prune — to trim
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. bark — to shout
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. roll — a list
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — to cut
  23. chip — to eat
  24. prune — to trim

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