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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: straw · present · mug · tear · fork · clip · coach · row

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. row — to paddle
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. tear — to rip
  5. clip — to cut
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. present — there
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. mug — to rob
  10. tear — from crying
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. present — the time now
  14. fork — in a road
  15. row — a line
  16. tear — from crying
  17. clip — for paper
  18. present — a gift
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. mug — a face
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. mug — a cup

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