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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. content — happy
  3. bulb — for light
  4. content — the amount
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — the fish
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bass — low music
  10. file — a line of people
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wind — moving air
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. dip — to sink
  16. saw — the tool
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. saw — the tool
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. wind — moving air
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. file — a document
  24. dip — a sauce

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