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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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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: board · perch · clip · chip · root · straw · pitcher · wind

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. perch — the fish
  4. root — the cause
  5. root — of a plant
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. board — to get on
  9. wind — moving air
  10. root — of a word
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. clip — to cut
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. wind — moving air
  19. board — a committee
  20. clip — a video
  21. chip — to eat
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. clip — for paper
  24. chip — for betting

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