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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. shower — rain
  3. wind — moving air
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. rash — a series
  7. chair — a leader
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — from a university
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. rash — hasty
  14. rock — a stone
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wind — moving air
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. shower — to wash
  19. degree — temperature
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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