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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. cold — not warm
  5. fall — the season
  6. pit — a hole
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. cold — an illness
  11. pop — to visit
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. season — in sport
  14. fall — to drop
  15. cue — a signal
  16. cue — a hint
  17. squash — the sport
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. pop — soda
  20. cue — for pool
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. fall — to drop
  23. pop — music
  24. squash — to crush

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