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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. swing — music
  11. rash — a series
  12. rash — hasty
  13. fall — to drop
  14. tear — to rip
  15. bass — the fish
  16. swing — in golf
  17. tear — from crying
  18. swing — to play on
  19. tear — from crying
  20. fork — in a road
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. row — a line
  24. fork — to eat with

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