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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. hand — in cards
  3. ground — a position
  4. bass — the fish
  5. spring — of water
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — crushed
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. squash — to crush
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. spring — a coil
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. spring — the season
  14. stock — goods
  15. squash — the sport
  16. bass — low music
  17. hand — help
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. stock — shares
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. racket — for tennis

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