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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: race · squash · cold · rock · band · ruler

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. squash — the sport
  3. cold — not warm
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. rock — music
  6. race — humankind
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. rock — a stone
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. band — a ring
  12. squash — to crush
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. band — a music group
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — the arms race
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. cold — an illness

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