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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: mate · cap · cell · prune · cabinet · season · race · drill

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. drill — a practice
  3. prune — to trim
  4. season — of the year
  5. prune — to trim
  6. mate — to breed
  7. drill — the tool
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cell — a phone
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — a contest
  14. cap — of ice
  15. season — in sport
  16. cap — a lid
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. cap — a hat
  19. mate — a partner
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. race — humankind
  22. drill — army training
  23. season — to add flavour
  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