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: fork · prune · scale · safe · pop · last · wind · spring

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. last — to go on
  4. fork — in a road
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. prune — to trim
  7. last — final
  8. pop — music
  9. spring — of water
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. prune — to trim
  12. spring — a coil
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. scale — in music
  15. scale — size or range
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — to visit
  18. spring — the season
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. last — finally
  24. prune — the fruit

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