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: firm · bowl · content · press · cold · tear

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. firm — decided
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. tear — to rip
  5. content — the amount
  6. cold — an illness
  7. tear — from crying
  8. cold — not warm
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. press — a publisher
  11. press — newspapers
  12. firm — steady
  13. tear — from crying
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. firm — a company
  16. press — to push
  17. content — happy
  18. cold — the Cold War

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