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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: court · safe · mark · patient · degree · track · mine · craft

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. craft — a skill
  3. degree — temperature
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. degree — from a university
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. degree — an amount
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mine — for digging
  13. track — a song
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. mark — a grade
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. craft — boats
  19. track — a path
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — of law
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. track — to keep track
  24. court — for sport

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