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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. cold — not warm
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. snap — to click
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. ball — a great time
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. rock — a stone
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. cold — an illness
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. band — a music group
  22. rock — music
  23. ball — a dance
  24. band — a ring

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