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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. stem — to come from
  5. rock — music
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. cold — an illness
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. pitch — completely
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a line of people
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bass — low music
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. rock — a stone
  20. file — a tool
  21. cold — not warm
  22. pass — a permit
  23. bass — the fish
  24. pass — to spend time

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