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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. swing — to play on
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. spell — letters
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. present — a gift
  8. roll — a list
  9. spell — magic
  10. swing — in golf
  11. cold — an illness
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. rush — hurry
  14. present — the time now
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. kick — in football
  17. cold — not warm
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. chip — for betting
  20. present — there
  21. chip — to eat
  22. swing — music
  23. spell — a short time
  24. roll — a cake

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