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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. hand — in cards
  3. fall — to drop
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — what's left
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. file — a line of people
  10. fall — the season
  11. file — a tool
  12. fall — to drop
  13. hand — help
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. prune — to trim
  16. file — a document
  17. band — a music group
  18. rest — a break

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