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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. prune — to trim
  3. squash — the sport
  4. prune — to trim
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. land — ground
  7. stem — to come from
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. land — to come down
  14. tear — from crying
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. bass — low music
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bass — the fish
  20. squash — to crush
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. tear — to rip
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. land — a country

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