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: coach · pound · season · shower · cue · fork · club · prune

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. club — a group
  4. shower — to wash
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. club — for dancing
  10. club — for golf
  11. cue — for pool
  12. cue — a hint
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. cue — a signal
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. season — in sport
  20. pound — a weight
  21. shower — rain
  22. fork — in a road
  23. season — of the year
  24. 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