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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.

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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: perch · bore · rash · trunk · face · court

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. face — to confront
  3. perch — the fish
  4. bore — to drill
  5. court — of law
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. rash — hasty
  8. face — part of the head
  9. bore — to tire
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. rash — a series
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. face — to point toward
  17. court — for sport
  18. court — of a king

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