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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 116 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: mouse · face · trunk · tube · mug · wound · chair · branch

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. tube — the underground
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. branch — a division
  7. wound — an injury
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. mug — a face
  10. face — to point toward
  11. wound — an injury
  12. mug — to rob
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. mug — a cup
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. face — part of the head
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. tube — a container
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. face — to confront
  24. trunk — of a tree

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