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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 · face · field · snap · trunk · hide · staff · stem

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. staff — employees
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. face — to confront
  6. snap — to click
  7. field — for sport
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. field — farmland
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. staff — employees
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. staff — a stick
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. branch — a division
  20. field — a subject
  21. face — to point toward
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. face — part of the head
  24. hide — animal skin

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