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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: branch · shower · club · net · hand · trunk · arm · race

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. race — humankind
  3. hand — help
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. race — the arms race
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. branch — a division
  13. shower — rain
  14. hand — in cards
  15. club — for golf
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. club — a group
  18. net — after costs
  19. shower — to wash
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. net — for catching
  22. race — a contest
  23. club — for dancing
  24. branch — of a bank

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