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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: land · hand · field · present · trunk · saw · hide · coach

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. field — farmland
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. present — the time now
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. present — there
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. hand — help
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. saw — the tool
  14. land — ground
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. land — to come down
  19. land — a country
  20. present — a gift
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. saw — the tool
  24. trunk — of a tree

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