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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: rest · spring · prune · mouse · snap · present · cap · bay

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. present — the time now
  3. present — a gift
  4. snap — to click
  5. cap — a lid
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. prune — to trim
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. cap — of ice
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. cap — a hat
  13. present — there
  14. spring — of water
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. prune — to trim
  20. rest — a break
  21. spring — the season
  22. spring — a coil
  23. rest — what's left
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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