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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. row — a line
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. net — for catching
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. net — in sport
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. net — after costs
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. bear — the animal
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. row — to paddle
  17. degree — an amount
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. cold — an illness
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. cold — not warm

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