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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. key — the most important part
  7. key — in music
  8. key — for a lock
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. wake — a trail
  14. wind — moving air
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. cold — the Cold War

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