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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — to trim
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. mine — for digging
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — rain
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. ground — the earth
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. ground — a position
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. ground — crushed
  19. fork — in a road
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. plane — a tool
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. plane — in geometry

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