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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. race — the arms race
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. file — a tool
  7. band — a ring
  8. race — humankind
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. track — a song
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. track — a path
  16. track — to keep track
  17. file — a document
  18. race — a contest
  19. band — a music group
  20. saw — the tool
  21. file — a line of people
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. cold — an illness
  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