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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: stand · land · cabinet · field · fan · wind · deal · court

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. deal — to handle
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. court — for sport
  5. court — of a king
  6. wind — moving air
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. land — to come down
  9. land — ground
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. field — a subject
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. stand — to bear
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. field — farmland
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. wind — moving air
  19. land — a country
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. field — for sport
  23. court — of law
  24. fan — to cool the air

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