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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: arm · hand · fan · face · board · row · prune · bore

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. bore — to tire
  5. board — a committee
  6. bore — to drill
  7. prune — to trim
  8. row — a line
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. prune — to trim
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. face — part of the head
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. row — to paddle
  18. face — to point toward
  19. hand — help
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. board — to get on
  24. hand — in cards

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