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: lean · prune · land · tear · race · present · trunk · season

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. season — of the year
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. lean — thin
  5. race — the arms race
  6. tear — to rip
  7. race — humankind
  8. land — a country
  9. prune — to trim
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. race — a contest
  13. land — to come down
  14. present — there
  15. present — the time now
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. land — ground
  18. prune — to trim
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — in sport
  22. lean — to bend
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — from crying

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