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 116 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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. face — part of the head
  3. chip — for betting
  4. face — to confront
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. bear — the animal
  7. degree — temperature
  8. file — a line of people
  9. degree — an amount
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. clip — a video
  14. prune — to trim
  15. file — a tool
  16. chip — to eat
  17. bear — the animal
  18. clip — to cut
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. face — to point toward
  21. clip — for paper
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. file — a document
  24. fan — to cool the air

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