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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. current — electric
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — to shout
  6. wind — moving air
  7. current — of water
  8. fine — high quality
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. sharp — clever
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. current — happening now

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