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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. ground — the earth
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. ground — crushed
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. bass — the fish
  9. row — a line
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. bass — low music
  12. face — to point toward
  13. rush — hurry
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. cold — an illness
  16. squash — to crush
  17. branch — a division
  18. squash — the sport
  19. face — part of the head
  20. ground — a position
  21. cold — not warm
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. face — to confront

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