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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 120 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: bore · bound · wake · coach · row · ground · hand · perch

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. perch — the fish
  3. hand — help
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. ground — crushed
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bound — tied together
  9. row — a line
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. bound — obliged
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. ground — the earth
  18. bore — to tire
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. bound — certain
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. bore — to drill
  24. row — to paddle

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