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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: trunk · court · chest · press · arm · hide · staff · branch

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. chest — a box
  3. staff — employees
  4. branch — a division
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. staff — employees
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. chest — of your body
  11. court — of a king
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. staff — a stick
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. court — for sport
  19. press — to push
  20. press — a publisher
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. chest — of your body
  23. press — newspapers
  24. court — of law

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