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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. prune — to trim
  4. land — ground
  5. prune — to trim
  6. mark — a trace
  7. clip — for paper
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. mark — a grade
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. clip — to cut
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. fork — in a road
  15. clip — a video
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. tear — to rip
  18. plane — a tool
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. land — to come down
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. land — a country

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