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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. cell — a phone
  6. season — in sport
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. season — of the year
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. perch — the fish
  13. cold — an illness
  14. pass — a permit
  15. object — a thing
  16. cold — not warm
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. object — an aim
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cell — in biology
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. nail — for a hammer

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