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 116 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: wave · prune · deal · bat · land · straw · rock · capital

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. rock — a stone
  4. capital — money
  5. prune — to trim
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. capital — a city
  8. rock — music
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. deal — to handle
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. land — ground
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. bat — the animal
  22. land — a country
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wave — of the sea

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