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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. chair — a leader
  3. tube — a container
  4. fall — to drop
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. rest — what's left
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. row — to paddle
  10. stock — goods
  11. fall — to drop
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — a break
  15. cold — an illness
  16. stock — shares
  17. fall — the season
  18. cold — not warm
  19. tube — the underground
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. row — a line
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. chair — to sit on

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