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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
468
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: bound · cabinet · degree · hide · spell · cell · file · field

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. spell — a short time
  4. file — a document
  5. spell — magic
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. field — farmland
  9. file — a line of people
  10. spell — letters
  11. degree — an amount
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. degree — from a university
  15. field — a subject
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. bound — obliged
  19. file — a tool
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. cell — a phone
  22. bound — tied together
  23. field — for sport
  24. bound — certain

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