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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: key · coach · perch · lean · drill · row · hand · file

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. file — a line of people
  3. row — a line
  4. key — in music
  5. drill — the tool
  6. drill — army training
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. hand — in cards
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — the fish
  11. key — for a lock
  12. file — a tool
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. drill — a practice
  15. hand — help
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to bend
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. row — to paddle
  24. file — a document

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