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 120 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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. band — a ring
  5. spell — a short time
  6. cold — an illness
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. field — for sport
  11. fine — all right
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. vault — a safe
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. field — a subject
  17. fine — high quality
  18. band — a music group
  19. spell — letters
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. field — farmland
  22. spell — magic
  23. pit — in a race
  24. cold — not warm

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