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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: lash · trunk · field · saw · wax · bark · fork · patient

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. saw — the tool
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. field — farmland
  6. bark — to shout
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. field — a subject
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. saw — the tool
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. field — for sport
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. fork — in a road
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. wax — to grow
  24. lash — to lash out

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