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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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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: chip · stand · straw · kick · field · rule

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. stand — to bear
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. rule — government
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. chip — to eat
  7. field — farmland
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. chip — for betting
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. field — a subject
  16. kick — in football
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. rule — a law

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