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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. court — of law
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. fall — the season
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. prune — to trim
  11. court — of a king
  12. fall — to drop
  13. perch — the fish
  14. rush — hurry
  15. court — for sport
  16. scale — size or range
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. mark — a trace
  19. fall — to drop
  20. prune — to trim
  21. sharp — clever
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. scale — in music
  24. perch — for a bird

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