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: bay · mine · dip · cold · net · pitcher · wind · vault

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — after costs
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. net — in sport
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. mine — for digging
  12. wind — moving air
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. wind — moving air
  19. cold — not warm
  20. vault — a safe
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. cold — an illness
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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