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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. row — to paddle
  4. spring — the season
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. current — electric
  7. current — of water
  8. last — final
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. spring — of water
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. current — happening now
  14. last — finally
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — to cut
  17. spring — a coil
  18. row — a line
  19. net — in sport
  20. last — to go on
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. clip — for paper
  24. net — for catching

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