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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. can — a tin
  8. game — a match
  9. cap — of ice
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cue — for pool
  15. wind — moving air
  16. game — wild animals
  17. cue — a hint
  18. bat — the animal
  19. can — to be able to
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. cue — a signal
  23. cap — a hat
  24. can — a tin

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