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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. spring — of water
  3. press — to push
  4. date — the fruit
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. dip — to sink
  7. spring — the season
  8. court — of law
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. court — of a king
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. press — a publisher
  15. press — newspapers
  16. spring — a coil
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. perch — the fish
  19. tear — to rip
  20. prune — to trim
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. court — for sport
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — from crying

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