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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 116 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: present · mate · firm · rest · prune · kid · hand · press

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. hand — help
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. rest — what's left
  5. prune — to trim
  6. firm — steady
  7. kid — to tease
  8. present — a gift
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. rest — what's left
  11. mate — a partner
  12. kid — child
  13. firm — decided
  14. press — newspapers
  15. mate — a friend
  16. rest — a break
  17. prune — to trim
  18. press — to push
  19. hand — in cards
  20. press — a publisher
  21. mate — to breed
  22. firm — a company
  23. present — there
  24. hand — part of the body

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