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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: bore · rash · court · ball · can · coach · perch · cold

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. bore — to drill
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. court — of a king
  6. bore — to tire
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — a series
  11. ball — a great time
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. perch — the fish
  14. cold — not warm
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. ball — a dance
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. cold — an illness
  21. can — to be able to
  22. can — a tin
  23. court — for sport
  24. can — a tin

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