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: straw · prune · scale · shower · plane · wound · kid · chip

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. kid — to tease
  3. wound — an injury
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. prune — to trim
  6. plane — a tool
  7. chip — for betting
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. scale — in music
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. chip — to eat
  15. shower — rain
  16. wound — an injury
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. kid — child
  22. scale — size or range
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. shower — to wash

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