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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. band — a music group
  4. board — a committee
  5. wind — moving air
  6. track — a song
  7. date — the fruit
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. track — to keep track
  11. snap — to click
  12. shower — rain
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. shower — to wash
  15. object — a thing
  16. wind — moving air
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. object — an aim
  21. track — a path
  22. board — to get on
  23. band — a ring
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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