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: press · chest · cold · race · cell · prune · charge · date

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. cell — in biology
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. prune — to trim
  7. cold — not warm
  8. date — the fruit
  9. press — newspapers
  10. chest — a box
  11. cell — a phone
  12. chest — of your body
  13. prune — to trim
  14. charge — a price
  15. chest — of your body
  16. charge — electricity
  17. press — a publisher
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. cold — an illness
  20. press — to push
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. race — the arms race
  23. charge — in control
  24. race — a contest

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