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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. swing — music
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. prune — to trim
  5. stem — to come from
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. swing — in golf
  10. squash — the sport
  11. swing — to play on
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — temperature
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. degree — an amount
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. wound — an injury
  22. prune — to trim
  23. wound — an injury
  24. sharp — clever

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