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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. ground — the earth
  3. ground — crushed
  4. roll — a list
  5. spell — a short time
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. spell — magic
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. shower — rain
  13. ground — a position
  14. capital — money
  15. roll — a cake
  16. tear — from crying
  17. spell — letters
  18. capital — a city
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. shower — to wash
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. tear — to rip
  24. racket — for tennis

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