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 120 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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. net — in sport
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. hand — help
  6. file — a tool
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. file — a line of people
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. net — after costs
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bass — the fish
  14. net — for catching
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. hand — in cards
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. file — a document
  20. club — for dancing
  21. club — for golf
  22. bass — low music
  23. club — a group
  24. bowl — to roll

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