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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. wind — moving air
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. cell — a phone
  6. ground — the earth
  7. mate — to breed
  8. ground — a position
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. date — the fruit
  12. stock — shares
  13. mate — a friend
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. club — for golf
  16. cell — in biology
  17. club — for dancing
  18. stock — goods
  19. mate — a partner
  20. ground — crushed
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. snap — to click
  23. club — a group
  24. wind — moving air

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