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 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.

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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. rest — a break
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. shower — to wash
  8. rest — what's left
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. rest — what's left
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. prune — to trim
  20. date — the fruit
  21. shower — rain
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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