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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: trunk · club · mark · stock · nail · root · cue · field

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. cue — for pool
  4. club — for dancing
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. cue — a signal
  7. field — for sport
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. field — a subject
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. club — a group
  14. mark — a trace
  15. stock — goods
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. field — farmland
  18. mark — a grade
  19. root — of a word
  20. stock — shares
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. root — the cause
  23. club — for golf
  24. root — of a plant

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