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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. rest — a break
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. spell — letters
  7. shower — to wash
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bass — low music
  10. shower — rain
  11. rash — hasty
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. wake — a trail
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bass — the fish
  20. spell — magic
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. rash — a series
  24. spell — a short 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