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 116 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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. prune — to trim
  3. spring — a coil
  4. game — a match
  5. board — a committee
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. last — to go on
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. spring — the season
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. spring — of water
  14. prune — to trim
  15. fork — in a road
  16. last — final
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — of the year
  21. last — finally
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. game — wild animals
  24. board — to get on

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