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: wound · last · prune · racket · suit · file · hand · bay

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. suit — in cards
  3. last — finally
  4. last — final
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. suit — to fit
  7. last — to go on
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. suit — clothes
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. file — a document
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. prune — to trim
  16. hand — help
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. wound — an injury
  22. file — a tool
  23. wound — an injury
  24. file — a line of people

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