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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to click
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. capital — money
  7. file — a tool
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. file — a line of people
  12. capital — a city
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. file — a document
  16. rash — a series
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bass — low music

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