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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: row · coach · hand · safe · court · current · field · mark

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. current — of water
  5. court — for sport
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. field — farmland
  10. current — electric
  11. row — a line
  12. field — for sport
  13. field — a subject
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. mark — a trace
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — of law
  22. mark — a grade
  23. hand — help
  24. current — happening now

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