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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — in cards
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. bass — low music
  5. plane — a tool
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. charge — electricity
  8. deal — to handle
  9. bass — the fish
  10. march — the month
  11. charge — in control
  12. charge — a price
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. row — a line
  15. cold — not warm
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. row — to paddle
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. march — the month
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. march — music
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — the Cold War

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