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: sharp · tear · bear · land · root · content · ball · prune

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. sharp — clever
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. root — of a plant
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. tear — from crying
  8. root — the cause
  9. bear — the animal
  10. content — the amount
  11. land — ground
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. ball — a great time
  14. prune — to trim
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. ball — a dance
  17. bear — the animal
  18. land — to come down
  19. tear — to rip
  20. land — a country
  21. tear — from crying
  22. root — of a word
  23. prune — to trim
  24. sharp — with an edge

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