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 spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. track — to keep track
  3. wind — moving air
  4. current — happening now
  5. current — of water
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. wind — moving air
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. capital — money
  14. current — electric
  15. track — a song
  16. track — a path
  17. craft — boats
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. file — a document
  20. shower — to wash
  21. capital — a city
  22. file — a tool
  23. file — a line of people
  24. shower — rain

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