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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: bound · straw · scale · ball · board · coach · stem · lash

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. board — to get on
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. board — a committee
  5. bound — certain
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. ball — a great time
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. scale — size or range
  10. bound — tied together
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. bound — obliged
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. stem — to come from
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. ball — a dance
  22. scale — in music
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. stem — of a plant

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