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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. bound — obliged
  4. wind — moving air
  5. ball — a great time
  6. pass — a permit
  7. hand — in cards
  8. land — to come down
  9. bound — certain
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. stem — to come from
  13. hand — help
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. land — a country
  18. ball — a dance
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. bound — tied together
  23. wind — moving air
  24. land — ground

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