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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: chip · wake · chair · game · prune · tear · arm · pound

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. tear — from crying
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. prune — to trim
  8. game — wild animals
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. chip — for betting
  11. chair — a leader
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. tear — from crying
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. pound — a weight
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. tear — to rip
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. wake — a trail
  22. game — a match
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chair — a professorship

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