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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. game — a match
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. track — a song
  5. track — a path
  6. rash — hasty
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rash — a series
  9. wound — an injury
  10. cold — an illness
  11. wind — moving air
  12. cold — not warm
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. wound — an injury
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. track — to keep track
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. game — wild animals
  24. game — a kind of play

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