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

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  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. row — a line
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. land — ground
  4. row — to paddle
  5. current — of water
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — moving air
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. current — electric
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. land — a country
  14. bat — the animal
  15. land — to come down
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. wind — to turn a key
  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