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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: last · cap · temple · date · deal · cabinet · prune · file

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. last — final
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cap — a lid
  10. file — a line of people
  11. cap — of ice
  12. cap — a hat
  13. date — the fruit
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. last — finally
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. deal — to handle
  20. last — to go on
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a tool
  23. prune — to trim
  24. date — on the calendar

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