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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. prune — to trim
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. charge — electricity
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. fine — high quality
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. charge — in control
  10. prune — to trim
  11. fine — all right
  12. stand — to bear
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. charge — a price
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. last — to go on
  17. last — finally
  18. last — final
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — an illness
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. mine — for digging

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