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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: present · swing · mouse · pass · prune · cabinet · straw · patient

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. swing — in golf
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. present — there
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. swing — to play on
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. present — the time now
  12. present — a gift
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. pass — a permit
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. swing — music

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