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: drill · pitch · rule · chest · spell · race · band · prune

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. race — the arms race
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. band — a music group
  5. spell — magic
  6. race — a contest
  7. chest — a box
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. spell — a short time
  11. band — a ring
  12. rule — government
  13. pitch — completely
  14. drill — a practice
  15. drill — army training
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. spell — letters
  20. race — humankind
  21. drill — the tool
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rule — a law
  24. band — a rubber band

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