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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. craft — a skill
  3. bat — the animal
  4. firm — decided
  5. rash — a series
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. tear — to rip
  9. tear — from crying
  10. board — a committee
  11. firm — a company
  12. cold — not warm
  13. craft — boats
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — a short time
  18. spell — letters
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. firm — steady
  22. board — to get on
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. craft — a handicraft

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