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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: field · patient · bore · bark · track · court · staff · trunk

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. court — for sport
  3. track — a path
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — a stick
  6. court — of law
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. field — a subject
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bore — to tire
  13. track — a song
  14. field — farmland
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. track — to keep track
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. staff — employees
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. court — of a king
  22. bore — to drill
  23. field — for sport
  24. patient — a sick person

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