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: chair · cell · trunk · cold · bay · prune · rest · hand

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cell — a phone
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. chair — a leader
  12. cold — an illness
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. rest — what's left
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. rest — a break
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. hand — help
  22. rest — what's left
  23. prune — to trim
  24. cell — in biology

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