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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cold — an illness
  3. craft — boats
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. craft — a skill
  8. pit — a hole
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. cold — not warm
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. tube — a container
  13. bat — the animal
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pit — in a race
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. tube — the underground
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. cold — the Cold War

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