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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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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: season · temple · rule · drill · club · cell

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. rule — government
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. club — for dancing
  5. drill — the tool
  6. rule — a law
  7. season — of the year
  8. club — a group
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. season — in sport
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. cell — in biology
  15. cell — a phone
  16. drill — a practice
  17. club — for golf
  18. temple — side of the head

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