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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — a friend
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to click
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mate — to breed
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. foot — a measure
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — the animal
  20. mine — for digging
  21. bass — low music
  22. bass — the fish
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. bat — for baseball

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