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: pound · capital · mate · wax · rash · court · deal · prune

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. capital — money
  7. mate — a partner
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. wax — to grow
  11. rash — hasty
  12. mate — a friend
  13. mate — to breed
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. court — for sport
  17. rash — a series
  18. court — of a king
  19. court — of law
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. deal — to handle
  23. capital — a city
  24. pound — a weight

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