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: net · bass · file · club · shower · bore · wind · chest

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bass — low music
  3. file — a line of people
  4. shower — rain
  5. club — for golf
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. club — for dancing
  8. file — a document
  9. chest — of your body
  10. net — after costs
  11. net — in sport
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bore — to tire
  16. shower — to wash
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. club — a group
  19. wind — moving air
  20. chest — a box
  21. file — a tool
  22. net — for catching
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. bore — gave birth

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