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: bound · rush · squash · rash · cold · prune · drill · ball

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. ball — a dance
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. squash — the sport
  8. cold — not warm
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — to trim
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rash — hasty
  13. drill — the tool
  14. rash — a series
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bound — obliged
  18. squash — to crush
  19. ball — a great time
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bound — certain
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bound — tied together
  24. drill — army training

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