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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. sharp — clever
  3. squash — to crush
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. spell — magic
  6. squash — the sport
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. staff — employees
  9. spell — a short time
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. tear — to rip
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. staff — a stick
  15. cell — in biology
  16. tear — from crying
  17. staff — employees
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. shower — rain
  21. tear — from crying
  22. cell — a phone
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. spell — letters

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