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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. tube — the underground
  3. prune — to trim
  4. game — wild animals
  5. tube — a container
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. press — a publisher
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. row — a line
  11. kid — child
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. press — to push
  15. kid — to tease
  16. game — a match
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. row — to paddle
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. press — newspapers
  21. dip — to sink
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. prune — to trim
  24. dip — to dunk

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