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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: field · ground · chip · staff · straw · coach · firm · cell

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — a stick
  4. chip — for betting
  5. firm — steady
  6. ground — a position
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. field — for sport
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. ground — crushed
  11. firm — decided
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. ground — the earth
  14. field — farmland
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. field — a subject
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cell — in biology
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. firm — a company
  23. staff — employees
  24. coach — a trainer

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