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: band · bat · snap · cell · prune · rush · pound · deal

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a music group
  3. rush — hurry
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. cell — in biology
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. cell — a phone
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. prune — to trim
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. pound — a weight
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to click
  22. deal — to handle
  23. bat — the animal
  24. prune — to trim

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