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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: kid · perch · nail · field · trunk · last · ruler · board

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. field — farmland
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. kid — child
  9. last — final
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. perch — the fish
  12. field — a subject
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. last — to go on
  16. field — for sport
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. last — finally
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. kid — to tease
  23. board — to get on
  24. perch — for a bird

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