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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: land · march · mug · game · cell · cabinet · degree · wound

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. mug — to rob
  5. cell — in biology
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. mug — a face
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. degree — temperature
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. land — to come down
  14. land — ground
  15. degree — from a university
  16. mug — a cup
  17. wound — an injury
  18. game — wild animals
  19. march — the month
  20. land — a country
  21. degree — an amount
  22. game — a match
  23. wound — an injury
  24. cabinet — ministers

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