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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. pound — a weight
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. prune — to trim
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. march — the month
  7. file — a document
  8. tear — from crying
  9. chest — of your body
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. chest — of your body
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. march — music
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. prune — to trim
  18. tear — from crying
  19. file — a line of people
  20. chest — a box
  21. tear — to rip
  22. march — the month
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. pound — for dogs

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