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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: fall · rock · face · row · land · rest · bore · present

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. face — part of the head
  5. land — a country
  6. rest — what's left
  7. fall — to drop
  8. present — a gift
  9. face — to confront
  10. fall — to drop
  11. rock — a stone
  12. land — ground
  13. bore — to drill
  14. row — a line
  15. present — the time now
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. present — there
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. land — to come down
  20. row — to paddle
  21. fall — the season
  22. rest — what's left
  23. face — to point toward
  24. rock — music

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