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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. shower — rain
  3. lean — to bend
  4. row — a line
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — an injury
  7. swing — in golf
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. lean — thin
  10. game — a match
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. row — to paddle
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. foot — a measure
  17. season — of the year
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. season — in sport
  20. shower — to wash
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. swing — to play on
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. swing — music

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