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 124 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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. charge — a price
  3. track — to keep track
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. drill — army training
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. track — a song
  8. charge — in control
  9. charge — electricity
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. drill — the tool
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. wind — moving air
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. stock — shares
  17. date — the fruit
  18. drill — a practice
  19. stock — goods
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. wind — moving air
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. cold — not warm

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