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: march · straw · shower · tear · deal · fork

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. march — the month
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. march — music
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. deal — to handle
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. shower — rain
  12. march — the month
  13. tear — to rip
  14. fork — in a road
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying

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