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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: swing · craft · field · deal · chest · perch · racket · stock

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — a box
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — for sport
  8. deal — to handle
  9. swing — music
  10. stock — shares
  11. chest — of your body
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. craft — boats
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. swing — in golf
  18. perch — the fish
  19. stock — goods
  20. field — farmland
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. swing — to play on
  24. craft — a skill

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