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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. prune — to trim
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. saw — the tool
  6. wake — a trail
  7. file — a document
  8. swing — music
  9. file — a tool
  10. prune — to trim
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. cold — not warm
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. saw — the tool
  16. file — a line of people
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. swing — in golf
  19. swing — to play on
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. deal — to handle
  24. cold — an illness

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