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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. charge — electricity
  3. charge — a price
  4. kick — in football
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. wake — a trail
  8. file — a document
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. shower — rain
  13. wind — moving air
  14. charge — in control
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. file — a line of people
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. wind — moving air
  24. file — a tool

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