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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. court — of a king
  3. fall — to drop
  4. current — of water
  5. current — happening now
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. tear — from crying
  8. lean — thin
  9. court — for sport
  10. tear — from crying
  11. fall — to drop
  12. court — of law
  13. object — a thing
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. object — to protest
  16. lean — to bend
  17. spring — the season
  18. tear — to rip
  19. spring — a coil
  20. object — an aim
  21. current — electric
  22. spring — of water
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. fall — the season

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