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 120 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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. stock — goods
  4. rush — hurry
  5. tube — a container
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. tube — the underground
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bat — the animal
  17. stock — shares
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. pound — a weight
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. snap — to click
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. fine — high quality
  24. tube — in a tire

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