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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. squash — the sport
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. mate — a friend
  7. squash — to crush
  8. bass — low music
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fall — to drop
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. fall — the season
  15. mate — a partner
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. rush — hurry
  19. fall — to drop
  20. tear — from crying
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bass — the fish
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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