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: face · lean · tear · craft · last · land · prune · swing

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. face — to point toward
  3. last — to go on
  4. lean — thin
  5. last — final
  6. land — to come down
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. face — part of the head
  9. tear — from crying
  10. lean — to bend
  11. prune — to trim
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — music
  16. land — ground
  17. prune — to trim
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. last — finally
  20. swing — to play on
  21. craft — a skill
  22. face — to confront
  23. land — a country
  24. craft — boats

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