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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. bass — low music
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. plane — a tool
  10. snap — to click
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bass — the fish
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. spring — of water
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. spring — the season
  21. cold — an illness
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. vault — a safe
  24. bass — the instrument

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