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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. bulb — for light
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. wind — moving air
  5. saw — the tool
  6. cell — in biology
  7. land — ground
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cell — a phone
  13. kid — to tease
  14. land — a country
  15. craft — boats
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. bulb — for light
  19. craft — a skill
  20. land — to come down
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. kid — child

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