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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. rash — a series
  3. spell — letters
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — magic
  6. tear — from crying
  7. mug — a face
  8. spring — a coil
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. mug — to rob
  12. rash — hasty
  13. bat — the animal
  14. tear — to rip
  15. spring — the season
  16. cell — a phone
  17. cell — in biology
  18. mug — a cup
  19. tear — from crying
  20. spring — of water
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. coach — a trainer

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