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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. rule — government
  4. ball — a dance
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. rash — a series
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. rash — hasty
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. rule — a law
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. file — a tool
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. fork — in a road
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a document
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. ball — a great time

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