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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. cell — in biology
  3. ground — a position
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — magic
  6. tear — from crying
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. ground — crushed
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. bulb — for light
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. tear — from crying
  15. stock — goods
  16. wake — a trail
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. tear — to rip
  19. deal — to handle
  20. ground — the earth
  21. bulb — for light
  22. spell — letters
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. wake — before a funeral

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