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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — moving air
  7. file — a line of people
  8. file — a tool
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. file — a document
  11. kick — in football
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — of your body
  17. spring — the season
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. spring — of water
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mine — belonging to me

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