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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: deal · field · stand · wound · perch · chest · cabinet · squash

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. field — farmland
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. deal — to handle
  7. wound — an injury
  8. stand — to bear
  9. field — a subject
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. perch — the fish
  12. squash — to crush
  13. squash — the sport
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. wound — an injury
  16. chest — of your body
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. chest — a box
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. field — for sport
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. perch — for a bird

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