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: prune · season · fine · content · present · mine · cold · mate

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. present — the time now
  4. season — in sport
  5. content — happy
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mate — a partner
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. present — there
  10. prune — to trim
  11. fine — all right
  12. content — the amount
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mate — a friend
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. fine — high quality
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. cold — an illness
  19. season — of the year
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mine — for digging

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