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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: club · wake · branch · tube · field · stock · capital · trunk

  1. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. capital — money
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. capital — a city
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. club — for golf
  12. tube — the underground
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. tube — a container
  15. field — farmland
  16. stock — shares
  17. stock — goods
  18. branch — a division
  19. field — for sport
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. club — a group
  23. club — for dancing
  24. field — a subject

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