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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. staff — a stick
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. staff — employees
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. club — for golf
  8. wind — moving air
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. band — a ring
  11. cold — an illness
  12. club — for dancing
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. wind — moving air
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. staff — employees
  17. lean — thin
  18. vault — a safe
  19. club — a group
  20. chair — a leader
  21. band — a music group
  22. lean — to bend
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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