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 124 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rule · degree · fall · leaves · tear · prune

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. tear — from crying
  5. rule — government
  6. fall — the season
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. fall — to drop
  9. tear — to rip
  10. degree — temperature
  11. fall — to drop
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. rule — a law
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — an amount
  18. prune — to trim

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