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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. swing — to play on
  3. wind — moving air
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. shower — to wash
  6. wind — moving air
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. board — a committee
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. kid — child
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. kid — to tease
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. shower — rain
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. board — to get on
  20. swing — in golf
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. swing — music

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