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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: clip · perch · wake · board · sharp · coach · row · stock

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. stock — goods
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. clip — to cut
  10. stock — shares
  11. row — to paddle
  12. sharp — clever
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. row — a line
  16. wake — a trail
  17. board — to get on
  18. clip — for paper
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. perch — the fish
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. clip — a video
  24. board — a committee

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