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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
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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 · row · spell · bound · rush · wave · degree · hide

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. degree — temperature
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. field — a subject
  6. degree — an amount
  7. field — farmland
  8. bound — tied together
  9. field — for sport
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. degree — from a university
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. spell — a short time
  14. bound — certain
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. row — to paddle
  17. spell — magic
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. spell — letters
  20. rush — hurry
  21. row — a line
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. bound — obliged

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