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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. squash — to crush
  3. squash — the sport
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — a country
  6. current — electric
  7. land — ground
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. swing — to play on
  10. spring — the season
  11. scale — in music
  12. current — happening now
  13. swing — music
  14. current — of water
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. spring — a coil
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. swing — in golf
  19. spring — of water
  20. pass — a permit
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. scale — size or range
  24. hand — help

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