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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. stand — to bear
  3. cold — an illness
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. wind — moving air
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. cold — not warm
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. row — to paddle
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wound — an injury
  18. row — a line
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. root — the cause
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. root — of a plant
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. root — of a word

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