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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. rest — what's left
  3. prune — to trim
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. content — happy
  10. rest — a break
  11. file — a tool
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. file — a document
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. row — to paddle
  16. prune — to trim
  17. rest — what's left
  18. content — the amount
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. row — a line
  21. stem — to come from
  22. file — a line of people
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. capital — money

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