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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. present — a gift
  3. shower — rain
  4. bat — the animal
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a song
  8. present — the time now
  9. game — a match
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. track — a path
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. shower — to wash
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. ball — a dance
  21. game — wild animals
  22. present — there
  23. ball — a great time
  24. straw — dry grass

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