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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. wake — a trail
  3. net — in sport
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. bear — the animal
  6. wound — an injury
  7. shower — rain
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. row — to paddle
  10. wound — an injury
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. row — a line
  15. net — for catching
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. content — happy
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. content — the amount
  23. plane — a tool
  24. shower — to wash

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