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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. spring — a coil
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. clip — to cut
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. clip — a video
  10. wind — moving air
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. spring — the season
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. spring — of water
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. clip — for paper
  22. row — a line
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. mine — for digging

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