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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. pitch — completely
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. row — a line
  9. plane — a tool
  10. bass — low music
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. band — a ring
  13. stock — goods
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stock — shares
  16. kid — child
  17. row — to paddle
  18. kid — to tease
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. band — a music group
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. bass — the fish
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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