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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. lean — to bend
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. lean — thin
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. band — a music group
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. craft — boats
  14. craft — a skill
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. field — for sport
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. field — farmland
  23. field — a subject
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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