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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. track — a path
  7. track — a song
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cell — in biology
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. sharp — clever
  13. field — for sport
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. field — a subject
  16. prune — to trim
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. track — to keep track
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cell — in a prison

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