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've got to change the light ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. rest — what's left
  6. hand — help
  7. rest — what's left
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. roll — a list
  11. land — ground
  12. file — a document
  13. land — to come down
  14. roll — a cake
  15. file — a tool
  16. hand — in cards
  17. ground — the earth
  18. rest — a break
  19. ground — a position
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. ground — crushed
  22. file — a line of people
  23. land — a country
  24. bulb — for light

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