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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — not warm
  3. scale — size or range
  4. track — a path
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. shower — to wash
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. track — a song
  10. scale — in music
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. shower — rain
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. bore — to drill
  16. track — to keep track
  17. row — a line
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. pitch — completely
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. bore — to tire

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