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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. mine — for digging
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — the earth
  8. row — to paddle
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. land — ground
  16. dip — to sink
  17. ground — crushed
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pound — a weight
  21. rush — hurry
  22. row — a line
  23. land — a country
  24. dip — a sauce

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