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: shower · lean · game · bulb · stock · pit · cell · march

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. shower — rain
  3. game — a match
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. march — the month
  6. bulb — for light
  7. pit — a hole
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. cell — a phone
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. cell — in biology
  12. march — the month
  13. stock — goods
  14. game — wild animals
  15. march — music
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. lean — thin
  18. bulb — for light
  19. pit — in a race
  20. shower — to wash
  21. lean — to bend
  22. stock — shares
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. cell — in a prison

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