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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bore — to drill
  4. ball — a dance
  5. tear — from crying
  6. branch — a division
  7. ground — the earth
  8. pitch — completely
  9. bore — to tire
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. cold — not warm
  12. ball — a great time
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. scale — in music
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. scale — size or range
  19. tear — to rip
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. ground — crushed
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. ground — a position

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