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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: rest · rock · cell · face · bound · key · bore · cold

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bound — tied together
  4. cell — a phone
  5. key — the most important part
  6. bound — certain
  7. key — in music
  8. bore — to drill
  9. face — to confront
  10. key — for a lock
  11. bound — obliged
  12. cold — not warm
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. face — part of the head
  15. rock — music
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. rest — what's left
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. rest — what's left
  20. cold — an illness
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rest — a break
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. cell — in biology

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