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 120 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 is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. track — a path
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. stand — to bear
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fork — in a road
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. season — of the year
  9. present — the time now
  10. season — in sport
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. present — a gift
  13. prune — to trim
  14. cold — not warm
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. present — there
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. cold — an illness
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. track — to keep track

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