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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. roll — a cake
  3. craft — a skill
  4. present — there
  5. present — a gift
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. craft — boats
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. fork — in a road
  11. present — the time now
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. kid — child
  14. row — a line
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. row — to paddle
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. roll — a list
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — to tease
  24. saw — the tool

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