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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. craft — a skill
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. cold — not warm
  5. track — to keep track
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. cold — an illness
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. current — of water
  11. craft — boats
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. net — in sport
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. track — a song
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. sharp — clever
  20. current — happening now
  21. current — electric
  22. track — a path
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — for catching

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