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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: kid · bear · prune · march · snap · capital · pass · mouse

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. march — the month
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bear — the animal
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. pass — a permit
  8. march — the month
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. kid — to tease
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. capital — money
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. snap — to click
  18. kid — child
  19. march — music
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bear — the animal
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. prune — to trim

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