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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: court · straw · branch · bat · board · trunk · patient · face

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. board — to get on
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. face — part of the head
  8. face — to point toward
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. board — a committee
  11. court — of a king
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. court — of law
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. branch — a division
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. face — to confront
  24. court — for sport

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