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 120 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 · rest · plane · fine · chair · degree · row · last

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. chair — a leader
  3. degree — temperature
  4. row — a line
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. last — finally
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. prune — to trim
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. rest — what's left
  12. fine — high quality
  13. last — final
  14. rest — what's left
  15. degree — an amount
  16. fine — all right
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. row — to paddle
  20. degree — from a university
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. rest — a break
  23. prune — to trim
  24. plane — a tool

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