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 124 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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. scale — size or range
  3. pop — music
  4. cold — an illness
  5. rule — government
  6. pop — soda
  7. ground — a position
  8. scale — in music
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rest — a break
  11. cold — not warm
  12. rule — a law
  13. rest — what's left
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. ground — crushed
  16. shower — to wash
  17. rest — what's left
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. ground — the earth
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. shower — rain
  24. pop — to visit

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