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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. cold — an illness
  3. stem — to come from
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. suit — clothes
  6. cold — not warm
  7. tear — from crying
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. tear — to rip
  10. march — the month
  11. march — music
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bark — to shout
  18. suit — in cards
  19. season — in sport
  20. tear — from crying
  21. suit — to fit
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. march — the month
  24. season — of the year

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