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 116 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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — an illness
  6. prune — to trim
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. stand — to bear
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — a video
  11. land — ground
  12. tube — a container
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — for digging
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. land — a country
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tube — the underground
  20. clip — to cut
  21. land — to come down
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. mine — an explosive

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