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: wind · rush · squash · bound · roll · race · fork · prune

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. wind — moving air
  5. roll — a list
  6. squash — the sport
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. fork — in a road
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bound — tied together
  11. squash — to crush
  12. rush — hurry
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. roll — a cake
  17. race — humankind
  18. wind — moving air
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. bound — certain
  23. race — a contest
  24. bound — obliged

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