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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. spring — a coil
  3. prune — to trim
  4. shower — to wash
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. clip — for paper
  7. spring — of water
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. clip — a video
  10. present — the time now
  11. spring — the season
  12. cap — a hat
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. present — there
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. cap — of ice
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. present — a gift
  21. shower — rain
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. clip — to cut
  24. cap — a lid

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