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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. club — for dancing
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. bore — to tire
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. prune — to trim
  8. race — the arms race
  9. race — humankind
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. club — for golf
  12. mark — a grade
  13. prune — to trim
  14. club — a group
  15. ground — a position
  16. race — a contest
  17. ground — the earth
  18. saw — the tool
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. ground — crushed
  22. bore — to drill
  23. mark — a trace
  24. saw — the tool

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