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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: trunk · foot · nail · chest · shower · hand · press · perch

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. hand — in cards
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. chest — a box
  5. hand — help
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — rain
  12. chest — of your body
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. press — a publisher
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. press — newspapers
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. perch — the fish
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. foot — a measure
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. press — to push

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