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 120 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. race — a contest
  6. current — happening now
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — humankind
  9. last — to go on
  10. last — finally
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. bat — the animal
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. last — final
  18. band — a ring
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. current — of water
  22. current — electric
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. band — a music group

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