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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: branch · present · net · mine · lie · trunk · hand · court

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. present — there
  3. court — of law
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. branch — a division
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. net — after costs
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. present — a gift
  12. hand — help
  13. present — the time now
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. lie — to recline
  17. court — for sport
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. net — in sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. hand — in cards
  22. mine — for digging
  23. net — for catching
  24. lie — an untruth

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