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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 120 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: wind · rush · spell · degree · bowl · file · field · drill

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. drill — a practice
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. wind — moving air
  7. spell — a short time
  8. rush — hurry
  9. spell — magic
  10. drill — the tool
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — farmland
  13. file — a document
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. degree — an amount
  18. field — a subject
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. file — a tool
  21. spell — letters
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. wind — moving air
  24. degree — from a university

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