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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. scale — size or range
  3. content — the amount
  4. season — of the year
  5. saw — the tool
  6. spring — the season
  7. scale — in music
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. cold — not warm
  11. suit — to fit
  12. content — happy
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — an illness
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. suit — clothes
  17. spring — a coil
  18. saw — the tool
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. suit — in cards
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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