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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · cold · capital · firm · press · trunk · prune · drill

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. firm — decided
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. drill — the tool
  5. capital — a city
  6. season — in sport
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. press — newspapers
  9. firm — steady
  10. prune — to trim
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. season — of the year
  14. cold — an illness
  15. press — to push
  16. prune — to trim
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — not warm
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. drill — a practice
  21. capital — money
  22. press — a publisher
  23. drill — army training
  24. firm — a company

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