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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. race — humankind
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. tear — from crying
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. capital — money
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. race — a contest
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. capital — a city
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. wind — moving air
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. race — the arms race

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