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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. fall — to drop
  3. spring — of water
  4. content — happy
  5. mug — a cup
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. content — the amount
  8. spring — a coil
  9. row — to paddle
  10. fall — to drop
  11. spring — the season
  12. mug — to rob
  13. fall — the season
  14. ground — the earth
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. row — a line
  17. ground — crushed
  18. cap — of ice
  19. cap — a lid
  20. ground — a position
  21. mug — a face
  22. wind — moving air
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. cap — a hat

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