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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. sharp — clever
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. mate — a partner
  6. shower — to wash
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. mate — to breed
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. last — finally
  12. rash — a series
  13. last — to go on
  14. wind — moving air
  15. last — final
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. shower — rain
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. mate — a friend
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. wind — moving air
  24. rash — hasty

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