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: wind · band · rule · cell · saw · cold

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. rule — government
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cell — in biology
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rule — a law
  9. band — a ring
  10. wind — moving air
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. saw — the tool
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cell — a phone
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. band — a music group
  18. wind — moving air

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