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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. content — the amount
  3. saw — the tool
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. wound — an injury
  7. spring — a coil
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. bass — the fish
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. content — happy
  13. saw — the tool
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. spring — of water
  16. face — part of the head
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. spring — the season
  19. face — to confront
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bass — low music
  22. wound — an injury
  23. face — to point toward
  24. fall — the season

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