ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

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.

Make a worksheet

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
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. fall — to drop
  3. scale — in music
  4. scale — size or range
  5. bank — for money
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. fall — to drop
  8. tear — to rip
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fall — the season
  13. prune — to trim
  14. bank — of a river
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. tear — from crying
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. bank — for money

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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