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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. spell — letters
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. fall — to drop
  5. cell — in biology
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. club — a group
  9. bark — to shout
  10. spell — a short time
  11. club — for golf
  12. cell — a phone
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. club — for dancing
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. mine — for digging
  17. spell — magic
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bound — obliged
  21. fall — the season
  22. bound — certain
  23. bound — tied together
  24. prune — to trim

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