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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: season · mine · vault · band · drill · prune · fine · dip

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. prune — to trim
  3. season — in sport
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. band — a ring
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. season — of the year
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. prune — to trim
  13. fine — high quality
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. band — a music group
  17. mine — for digging
  18. dip — to sink
  19. fine — all right
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. vault — a safe
  22. drill — army training
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. drill — the tool

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