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 120 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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pit — a hole
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cold — not warm
  5. band — a music group
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. cold — an illness
  8. band — a ring
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. wound — an injury
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. wound — an injury
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. cell — in biology
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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