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 120 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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. prune — to trim
  4. mark — a grade
  5. kick — in football
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. race — humankind
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. spring — of water
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. spell — a short time
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. prune — to trim
  14. race — a contest
  15. spell — magic
  16. spring — the season
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. spell — letters
  19. dip — to sink
  20. spring — a coil
  21. mark — a trace
  22. race — the arms race
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. bat — the animal

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