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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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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: tear · coach · stick · bore · sharp · cell · club · perch

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. tear — to rip
  3. club — for golf
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. club — for dancing
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. cell — in biology
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. club — a group
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. bore — to tire
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bore — to drill
  23. perch — the fish
  24. sharp — clever

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