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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. rash — a series
  3. rash — hasty
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cue — for pool
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. cue — a signal
  9. wound — an injury
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. swing — music
  15. land — ground
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. swing — to play on
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. cue — a hint
  22. land — a country
  23. swing — in golf
  24. cold — not warm

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