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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. mark — a grade
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. row — a line
  7. cold — an illness
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. cold — not warm
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. row — to paddle
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. mark — a trace
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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