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

Word bank: cold · snap · face · wake · rest · board · saw · prune

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. wake — a trail
  3. face — to point toward
  4. saw — the tool
  5. prune — to trim
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. board — a committee
  10. snap — to click
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. rest — a break
  13. rest — what's left
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. face — part of the head
  16. rest — what's left
  17. prune — to trim
  18. saw — the tool
  19. face — to confront
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. board — to get on
  22. cold — not warm
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. cold — an illness

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