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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. pop — soda
  3. last — final
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. key — the most important part
  6. prune — to trim
  7. key — in music
  8. key — for a lock
  9. last — to go on
  10. land — to come down
  11. pop — to visit
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. press — a publisher
  15. land — a country
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. chair — a leader
  19. press — to push
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. land — ground
  22. pop — music
  23. press — newspapers
  24. last — finally

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