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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. cold — an illness
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. net — in sport
  6. cold — not warm
  7. file — a tool
  8. file — a line of people
  9. lean — thin
  10. rush — hurry
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. bass — low music
  13. net — after costs
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. rock — music
  18. net — for catching
  19. file — a document
  20. bass — the fish
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. rock — a stone
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. lean — to bend

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