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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: clip · stick · chip · court · coach · rest · pound · fork

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. court — of a king
  5. chip — for betting
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. rest — what's left
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. court — for sport
  13. clip — a video
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. chip — to eat
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — to cut
  21. rest — what's left
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. court — of law

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