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: wound · cap · current · chest · patient · straw · present · prune

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. chest — of your body
  3. current — of water
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. prune — to trim
  6. current — happening now
  7. present — a gift
  8. chest — of your body
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. present — the time now
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. present — there
  14. wound — an injury
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. wound — an injury
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. cap — a hat
  20. prune — to trim
  21. current — electric
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. cap — of ice
  24. chest — a box

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