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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. press — to push
  3. staff — a stick
  4. staff — employees
  5. rock — a stone
  6. game — wild animals
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rock — music
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. cold — an illness
  12. present — there
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. pound — a weight
  17. press — newspapers
  18. rush — hurry
  19. present — the time now
  20. present — a gift
  21. staff — employees
  22. press — a publisher
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. game — a match

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