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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — shares
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. wound — an injury
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. season — of the year
  8. cell — a phone
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. mine — for digging
  11. tear — from crying
  12. snap — to click
  13. wound — an injury
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. rush — hurry
  18. season — in sport
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. tear — from crying
  23. cell — in biology
  24. tear — to rip

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