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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 116 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: chair · bark · bay · ball · clip · prune · squash · board

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. squash — the sport
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. bark — to shout
  5. board — to get on
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. chair — a leader
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. ball — a great time
  15. ball — a dance
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. clip — a video
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. board — a committee
  21. clip — to cut
  22. squash — to crush
  23. prune — to trim
  24. clip — for paper

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