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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. cold — not warm
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. race — the arms race
  7. bass — the fish
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. last — finally
  10. race — a contest
  11. wound — an injury
  12. race — humankind
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. cold — an illness
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. wound — an injury
  19. last — final
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. last — to go on
  22. bass — low music
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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