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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: field · roll · kid · race · squash · current · chip · wake

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. squash — to crush
  3. field — a subject
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — child
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. race — humankind
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. roll — a cake
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — a contest
  14. field — farmland
  15. chip — for betting
  16. roll — a list
  17. squash — the sport
  18. field — for sport
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. wake — a trail
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. current — happening now
  23. current — of water
  24. chip — to eat

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