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 120 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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. saw — the tool
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. row — a line
  5. row — to paddle
  6. capital — money
  7. staff — a stick
  8. capital — a city
  9. band — a ring
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mate — a friend
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. mate — a partner
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. band — a music group
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. fork — in a road
  21. staff — employees
  22. staff — employees
  23. cold — not warm
  24. mate — to breed

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