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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: cold · squash · stem · current · press · stand · perch · chair

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. press — a publisher
  4. stem — to come from
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. chair — a leader
  10. current — of water
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. stand — to bear
  14. current — electric
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. cold — not warm
  17. press — to push
  18. current — happening now
  19. squash — to crush
  20. cold — an illness
  21. squash — the sport
  22. perch — the fish
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. press — newspapers

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