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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. band — a music group
  3. hand — in cards
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. bore — to drill
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. dip — to sink
  9. ground — the earth
  10. bat — the animal
  11. hand — help
  12. ground — a position
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. shower — to wash
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. stock — shares
  17. stock — goods
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. ground — crushed
  22. bore — to tire
  23. band — a ring
  24. bat — for baseball

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