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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. net — after costs
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. net — in sport
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. object — an aim
  8. net — for catching
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. scale — size or range
  12. object — a thing
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. scale — in music
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. squash — the sport
  19. stem — to come from
  20. object — to protest
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. patient — a sick person

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