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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. cold — not warm
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. perch — the fish
  5. ground — crushed
  6. squash — the sport
  7. cold — an illness
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. bear — the animal
  11. ball — a great time
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. ground — the earth
  14. ball — a dance
  15. dip — to sink
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. squash — to crush
  18. rule — government
  19. rule — a law
  20. bear — the animal
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. ground — a position
  24. dip — to dunk

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