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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. sharp — clever
  5. cold — an illness
  6. mark — a trace
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. shower — rain
  11. mark — a grade
  12. prune — to trim
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. shower — to wash
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. prune — to trim
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. cold — not warm

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