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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pit — in a race
  7. wind — moving air
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. prune — to trim
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. cold — not warm
  12. date — the fruit
  13. shower — to wash
  14. wind — moving air
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. pop — to visit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pop — music
  21. pop — soda
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. jam — a tight spot

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