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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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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: cap · perch · clip · chip · rule · row · coach · suit

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. suit — to fit
  3. suit — in cards
  4. cap — of ice
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. chip — for betting
  8. suit — clothes
  9. cap — a lid
  10. perch — the fish
  11. chip — to eat
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. clip — to cut
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. clip — for paper
  16. cap — a hat
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. row — a line
  19. row — to paddle
  20. rule — a law
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. clip — a video
  24. rule — government

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