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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. cell — in biology
  6. tear — to rip
  7. race — a contest
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. net — after costs
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. net — for catching
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. race — humankind
  18. cell — a phone
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stock — shares
  21. stock — goods
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. net — in sport
  24. race — the arms race

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