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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · file · spell · face · plane · trunk · bore · bear

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. face — part of the head
  3. kid — child
  4. spell — letters
  5. bore — to drill
  6. file — a tool
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. file — a line of people
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bear — the animal
  12. kid — to tease
  13. file — a document
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. bear — the animal
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. face — to confront
  21. face — to point toward
  22. plane — a tool
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. plane — an aircraft

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