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've got to change the light ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. net — for catching
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. root — the cause
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. file — a document
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. root — of a plant
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — an illness
  14. wake — a trail
  15. net — in sport
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. root — of a word
  19. file — a tool
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. net — after costs
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. file — a line of people
  24. straw — dry grass

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