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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. last — finally
  3. cold — not warm
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bass — the fish
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bound — tied together
  9. cold — an illness
  10. bound — certain
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bound — obliged
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. last — to go on
  18. bass — low music
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. sharp — clever
  21. last — final
  22. craft — boats
  23. craft — a skill
  24. wind — moving air

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