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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. saw — the tool
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. net — after costs
  5. cold — an illness
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. track — to keep track
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. bass — low music
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. saw — the tool
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. net — in sport
  15. hand — in cards
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. net — for catching
  18. bass — the fish
  19. hand — help
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. kid — child
  23. kid — to tease
  24. track — a song

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