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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. tube — the underground
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. band — a ring
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. deal — to handle
  8. tube — a container
  9. clip — for paper
  10. prune — to trim
  11. band — a music group
  12. ball — a great time
  13. scale — in music
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. scale — size or range
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. clip — to cut
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. clip — a video
  23. ball — a dance
  24. scale — for weighing

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