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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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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: cold · temple · season · prune · present · drill · vault · last

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. cold — an illness
  4. last — to go on
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. cold — not warm
  7. drill — army training
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. drill — a practice
  10. prune — to trim
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. present — a gift
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. season — of the year
  15. present — the time now
  16. vault — a safe
  17. last — final
  18. present — there
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. drill — the tool
  21. prune — to trim
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. season — in sport
  24. last — finally

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