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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. key — for a lock
  3. tear — to rip
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. prune — to trim
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pop — music
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. pop — soda
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — temperature
  15. key — in music
  16. tear — from crying
  17. lean — to bend
  18. lean — thin
  19. prune — to trim
  20. wind — moving air
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. tear — from crying
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. key — the most important part

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