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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bear — the animal
  3. perch — the fish
  4. bear — the animal
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. game — a match
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. file — a tool
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. wind — moving air
  11. squash — the sport
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. snap — to click
  15. land — a country
  16. file — a document
  17. land — to come down
  18. squash — to crush
  19. game — wild animals
  20. land — ground
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. file — a line of people
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. wind — to turn a key

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