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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. season — in sport
  3. fall — to drop
  4. pop — music
  5. pop — to visit
  6. wind — moving air
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. prune — to trim
  9. pop — soda
  10. fall — the season
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — the season
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. season — of the year
  21. rash — a series
  22. fall — to drop
  23. spring — a coil
  24. season — to add flavour

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