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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. club — for dancing
  3. object — to protest
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. mate — to breed
  7. bore — to tire
  8. row — a line
  9. object — an aim
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. mate — a friend
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. mine — for digging
  15. object — a thing
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. row — to paddle
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. club — for golf
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. club — a group
  24. bore — to drill

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