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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. pop — music
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. wound — an injury
  8. band — a ring
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. mark — a grade
  13. band — a music group
  14. pop — soda
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. cold — an illness
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pop — to visit
  23. cold — not warm
  24. mark — a trace

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