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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. cell — a phone
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. rush — hurry
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. capital — money
  9. fork — in a road
  10. squash — to crush
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bore — to drill
  16. capital — a city
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. prune — to trim
  20. squash — the sport
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cell — in biology
  24. rush — a thrill

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