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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. staff — a stick
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. sharp — clever
  6. cold — not warm
  7. staff — employees
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. land — a country
  10. row — to paddle
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. land — to come down
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. row — a line
  16. land — ground
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. tube — a container
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. cold — an illness
  22. tube — the underground
  23. staff — employees
  24. coach — a trainer

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