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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: nail · perch · club · tear · land · field · chip · coach

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. land — to come down
  4. tear — from crying
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. club — a group
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. field — farmland
  12. land — a country
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. tear — to rip
  17. field — for sport
  18. club — for dancing
  19. land — ground
  20. club — for golf
  21. tear — from crying
  22. chip — for betting
  23. chip — to eat
  24. field — a subject

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