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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. wind — moving air
  3. file — a tool
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. spring — a coil
  6. present — a gift
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. present — the time now
  11. spring — of water
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. capital — a city
  14. spring — the season
  15. stem — to come from
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. pit — a hole
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. file — a line of people
  20. capital — money
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. file — a document
  24. capital — a big letter

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