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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. spell — letters
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. spell — magic
  6. face — to point toward
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wind — moving air
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. face — part of the head
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. face — to confront
  16. spell — a short time
  17. stock — goods
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. rock — a stone
  22. dip — to sink
  23. stock — shares
  24. wind — moving air

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