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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: stick · ball · row · sharp · chip · field · coach · pop

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. ball — a great time
  3. chip — for betting
  4. field — farmland
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. row — a line
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. field — for sport
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. row — to paddle
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. chip — to eat
  13. pop — music
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. ball — a dance
  16. sharp — clever
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. pop — soda
  24. pop — to visit

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