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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. cell — a phone
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. spring — the season
  5. cold — not warm
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. mark — a grade
  8. band — a ring
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. drill — army training
  12. spring — a coil
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. cell — in biology
  16. mark — a trace
  17. drill — a practice
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bulb — for light
  21. band — a music group
  22. bulb — for light
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. cold — an illness

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