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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. cold — an illness
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. pitch — completely
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. perch — the fish
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. band — a ring
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. band — a music group
  23. cold — not warm
  24. coach — a trainer

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