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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. row — to paddle
  5. ground — a position
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. rock — music
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. ground — crushed
  16. cold — an illness
  17. row — a line
  18. ground — the earth
  19. rock — a stone
  20. stem — to come from
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. cell — in biology
  23. cold — not warm
  24. sharp — clever

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