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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. craft — boats
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. net — after costs
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. drill — a practice
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. mark — a trace
  11. net — for catching
  12. drill — the tool
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. net — in sport
  15. mark — a grade
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. stand — to bear
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. craft — a skill
  20. drill — army training
  21. cold — not warm
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. cold — an illness
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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