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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. bulb — for light
  3. content — happy
  4. capital — money
  5. field — for sport
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. field — farmland
  8. saw — the tool
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. capital — a city
  11. snap — to click
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. field — a subject
  15. prune — to trim
  16. content — the amount
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. deal — to handle
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. saw — the tool
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  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