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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. perch — the fish
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. current — of water
  7. craft — a skill
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. craft — boats
  13. current — happening now
  14. current — electric
  15. file — a document
  16. cold — not warm
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. cold — an illness
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. date — the fruit
  23. kid — child
  24. date — on the calendar

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