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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. game — a match
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. current — of water
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. current — happening now
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. cold — not warm
  20. current — electric
  21. game — wild animals
  22. mine — for digging
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. pitcher — a jug

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