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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wind — moving air
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. court — for sport
  10. rock — a stone
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. rest — what's left
  14. wind — moving air
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. rest — what's left
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. deal — to handle
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. rest — a break
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. court — of a king
  24. court — of law

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