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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.

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: tear · club · mug · pop · shower · perch · clip · coach

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. pop — soda
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. shower — rain
  6. shower — to wash
  7. perch — the fish
  8. pop — to visit
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. clip — a video
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pop — music
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. clip — to cut
  15. mug — to rob
  16. mug — a face
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. club — for dancing
  19. club — a group
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. clip — for paper
  23. club — for golf
  24. perch — for a bird

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