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: cold · fall · firm · prune · rush · capital · branch · bear

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bear — the animal
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. firm — a company
  6. prune — to trim
  7. fall — the season
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. capital — a city
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. prune — to trim
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. cold — not warm
  14. branch — a division
  15. cold — an illness
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. fall — to drop
  19. firm — steady
  20. capital — money
  21. bear — the animal
  22. fall — to drop
  23. rush — hurry
  24. firm — decided

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