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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. wound — an injury
  3. kid — child
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. net — after costs
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. mark — a grade
  8. band — a music group
  9. wound — an injury
  10. band — a ring
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. net — for catching
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. mark — a trace
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. swing — music
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. kid — to tease
  21. perch — the fish
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. net — in sport

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