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 120 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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. prune — to trim
  5. present — a gift
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a ring
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — not warm
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. chip — for betting
  13. present — the time now
  14. cell — in biology
  15. bulb — for light
  16. band — a music group
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. present — there
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cold — an illness
  23. bulb — for light
  24. chip — in a computer

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