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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: track · mark · court · current · mine · kid · coach · spell

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  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. mine — for digging
  2. mark — a grade
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mark — a trace
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. spell — magic
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. court — of law
  9. kid — child
  10. court — for sport
  11. kid — to tease
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. track — a song
  14. court — of a king
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spell — letters
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. current — electric
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. current — of water
  22. track — to keep track
  23. track — a path
  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