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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. rash — hasty
  3. cold — an illness
  4. net — in sport
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. staff — employees
  9. rash — a series
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cold — not warm
  13. staff — a stick
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. net — after costs
  17. clip — to cut
  18. snap — to click
  19. net — for catching
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. staff — employees
  22. clip — for paper
  23. clip — a video
  24. safe — a strongbox

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