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. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. march — the month
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. wound — an injury
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. march — music
  10. file — a document
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. file — a line of people
  13. shower — to wash
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. file — a tool
  16. shower — rain
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. wound — an injury
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. march — the month

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