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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: spell · coach · chip · field · snap · court · track · cold

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. court — of a king
  4. cold — an illness
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. chip — for betting
  8. court — of law
  9. field — for sport
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. track — to keep track
  12. court — for sport
  13. spell — a short time
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. track — a path
  16. cold — not warm
  17. spell — magic
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. track — a song
  21. chip — to eat
  22. snap — to click
  23. spell — letters
  24. field — a subject

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