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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. sharp — clever
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. row — to paddle
  6. tear — from crying
  7. present — the time now
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. row — a line
  10. tear — to rip
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. present — a gift
  13. tear — from crying
  14. season — in sport
  15. bat — the animal
  16. season — of the year
  17. roll — a cake
  18. present — there
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bass — low music
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. roll — a list
  24. roll — on a roll

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