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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. snap — to click
  3. rush — hurry
  4. land — to come down
  5. mug — a cup
  6. prune — to trim
  7. file — a line of people
  8. craft — a skill
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. shower — to wash
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. land — ground
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. shower — rain
  15. prune — to trim
  16. file — a tool
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. craft — boats
  20. land — a country
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. mug — to rob
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. file — a document

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