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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: wound · chip · craft · ground · kick · staff · field · chair

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. wound — an injury
  3. ground — the earth
  4. chair — a leader
  5. staff — employees
  6. ground — crushed
  7. field — a subject
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. craft — boats
  12. staff — a stick
  13. craft — a skill
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. kick — in football
  16. chip — to eat
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. staff — employees
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. field — for sport
  21. wound — an injury
  22. chip — for betting
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. ground — a position

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