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: deal · plane · fall · bat · mate · cold · object · wound

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. wound — an injury
  3. deal — to handle
  4. bat — the animal
  5. mate — a friend
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — not warm
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. mate — a partner
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. plane — a tool
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. object — a thing
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. object — to protest
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. fall — to drop
  19. wound — an injury
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. fall — the season
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. object — an aim
  24. fall — to drop

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