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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: deal · mouse · squash · stem · hand · current · row · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. row — to paddle
  4. deal — to handle
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. stem — to come from
  8. squash — the sport
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — in cards
  12. current — happening now
  13. row — a line
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. squash — to crush
  16. current — electric
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. field — a subject
  19. current — of water
  20. field — farmland
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. stem — of a plant

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