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 120 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: current · race · shower · cap · deal · kid

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. kid — to tease
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. current — happening now
  5. race — a contest
  6. current — of water
  7. race — humankind
  8. deal — to handle
  9. race — the arms race
  10. current — electric
  11. cap — of ice
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. kid — child
  14. shower — to wash
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. shower — rain
  17. cap — a lid
  18. deal — a big deal

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