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 116 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: kick · bass · tear · cold · race · lean

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. tear — from crying
  3. race — the arms race
  4. race — humankind
  5. lean — to bend
  6. tear — to rip
  7. cold — not warm
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bass — low music
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. lean — thin
  15. race — a contest
  16. cold — an illness
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. kick — in football

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